


Just You

by Woolfhounds



Category: Lost Boys (Movies)
Genre: Alcohol, Blood Drinking, Drugging with vampire blood, Eventual Smut, Explicit Language, F/M, Romance, Vampires
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-18
Updated: 2020-02-20
Packaged: 2020-05-14 01:28:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 34,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19263211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Woolfhounds/pseuds/Woolfhounds
Summary: Nadia has just broken up with her boyfriend and it's her last summer in Santa Carla before she goes to college. She meets some vampires. I'm so bad at summaries, y'all. I'm sorry. This is pre-movie.





	1. Stale Beer and Strange Introductions

“ARE. YOU. KIDDING ME.” Reilly screams as they hit the boardwalk. The smell of cotton candy and stale donuts hits Nadia like a truck. It’s sickening, yet familiar. The wind coming off of the water makes her shiver. She pulls her ratty denim jacket tight around her shoulders. Reilly bounces ahead, her elbow-length mousy brown hair whipping in the breeze.

“It was a lame party anyway,” Nadia says.

“Sorry about Nathan.”

They weave through endless crowds of people, lights, whoops, and shrieks until they find a break in the crowd and Nadia catches her breath.

“He’s a dick anyway,” she says, some confidence filling her voice.

Reilly stops and firmly places her hands on Nadia’s shoulders. Nadia turns her head to face the water, trying to focus on the way the light makes the ocean twinkle in the darkness instead of the lump forming in her throat.

“Hey. Look at me,” Reilly gently encourages.

“No.” 

“Because you’re crying?”

“I’m not crying!” Nadia says; her voice breaks. “You’re such a bitch sometimes.”

“ _Look at me!_ ” Reilly commands.

Nadia whips her head to meet Reilly’s gaze and her blue eyes lock with Reilly’s warm brown ones. Tears spill freely down her cheeks and she weaves her hand through Reilly’s arms to flick them away.

“Nathan Hamilton is a piece of shit. He doesn’t deserve you, and he never will. We’re gonna get some cotton candy and some beers and we’re gonna get sloppy drunk and plot Nathan’s inevitable demise. Because he’s what?” 

Nadia sniffles. Reilly clears her throat.

“He’s WHAT?”

“Trash.”

“THAT’S my girl! Come on.”

Nadia looks past Reilly to the carousel. She’s felt eyes on her the entire time they’ve been standing at the edge of the boardwalk. The carousel spins slowly, its slightly off-kilter, _definitely_ off-key music blaring into the night. Nadia catches the eye of a young man, maybe a year or two older than herself. He has platinum blonde hair, pale (to the point where she wonders if he’s anemic or something), penetrating eyes, and a cigarette stashed behind his left ear. He’s dressed in a long black coat and biker boots. Definitely her type. _Definitely_ doesn’t think that polo shirts and khakis count as loungewear.

_Man, fuck you, Nathan_. 

He’s staring at her, a small smirk playing on his lips. Nadia’s chest tightens and her stomach does a backflip. She bites her lip and feels her cheeks go pink. His smirk widens into a much bigger grin. There’s something menacing about him that puts her on edge, yet pulls her closer. She feels the flush creeping down her chest and awkwardly tries to pull her jacket tighter around her body to disguise it.

Reilly, forever obtuse, takes her hand and drags her toward the carousel. The young man hops on one of the horses, his feet just barely touching the ground. He continues to watch her and lights a cigarette. Nadia tries to ignore him but finds herself checking for him over her shoulder every few seconds.

“Do you still have your fake college ID?” Reilly asks.

“I don’t think the beer garden is gonna take them.”

“I saw the manager giving weed to a twelve-year-old last weekend. I think we’ll be fine.”

Nadia gives Reilly’s hand two gentle pulses, their silent signal that something’s up. They continue to walk toward the carousel.

“Do you see that guy over there?” Nadia asks.

“The Mad Max reject? Yeah, I saw him.” 

“He’s been staring at me since we got here.”

Reilly turns and stops abruptly, her hair hitting Nadia in the face. Nadia spits it out noisily.

“You _don’t_ think he’s cute."

Nadia offers a half shrug in response. Reilly’s jaw drops.

“Seriously? We’ve been friends this long and you’ve neglected to tell me that _that_ is your ideal man?”

“Maybe he reads a lot of books.”

“Playboy isn’t a book – Nadia. I know you’re in pain, but there are other, much less self-destructive ways to deal with this.”

“Like you ogling that bartender with the bad Tom Selleck mustache in the beer garden?”

“It makes him look fun, okay? And he’s super into philosophy.”

“Reilly, he’s forty. And divorced. Three times.”

Reilly throws her spindly arms dramatically into the air.

“Alright! We both have terrible taste sometimes! Can we please. just. go. and get. drunk.”

Nadia watches the young man flick his cigarette off of the carousel and jump off the horse as the ride comes to a stop. He winks at her and disappears into the crowd exiting the ride.

“Alright,” Nadia sighs. “Alright, let’s go.”

“YES! I love you. Have I told you that?”

“Only after deeply manipulating me.”

“Okay, we can save that for couples therapy. Let’s gooooo!”

They tear toward the beer garden, flash their fake IDs to the bouncer (who seems much more interested in checking out a group of girls near the rollercoaster than actually doing his job) and claim the picnic table closest to the bar. Reilly grabs two warm beers and plunks one down in front of Nadia.

“To ditching your shitty boyfriend and moving on with your life!” she bellows.

Nadia rolls her eyes and unenthusiastically raises her glass.

“Wooo.”

Reilly proceeds to drain her glass and slams it down with a disgusted look on her face. 

“That’s good.”

“Really?” Nadia says, sniffing her beer. “Because you look nauseous, and this smells awful.” 

“I’m great,” Reilly says through a belch.

“Yeah? You’re turning gray. I think you might be sick.”

“It’s the lights.”

“The lights make you sick?”

“It’s a terrible genetic condition.”

Nadia laughs and braves a small sip of her beer. It’s warm, cheap, and far too sweet. She coughs and puts it back down on the table. Reilly rubs her hands together eagerly.

“I’m going to get another beer and maybe talk to Mick becauuuuuse his shift just started.”

“Try not to throw up on him!” Nadia shouts. Reilly turns around and flips her off, sticking her tongue out. Nadia watches her lean over and tap Mick on the shoulder. He turns around, his face lights up, and they chat comfortably. Nadia smiles to herself. She’s spent her entire life trying to get out of here, but she has to be honest: she’s going to miss Santa Carla in the fall. As fucking weird as this place is, it’s still home. 

As she’s about to take another sip of her beer, she notices a figure in a long, black coat swoop toward the bar. Mick’s attention drifts away from Reilly, who turns to face Nadia, grinning, and mouths, “OH MY GOD”

Nadia exhales into her beer, trying not to throw up. A shadow envelops her and the man from the carousel slides into the seat in front of her, grabbing her beer cup and replacing it with one filled with a dark liquid.

“I upgraded you," he purrs. Even his voice is hot. Is this guy serious?

"What is it?" she asks.  


"Rum and coke."

Nadia can feel her face getting hotter and redder by the second. She looks up into a pair of icy blue eyes.

“Thanks.”

He’s grinning at her and picks up his own drink.

“I’m David.”

“Nadia.”

“Pretty name.” He takes a sip. “I was hoping I’d find you again.”

“You’re quick,” Nadia offers. “I thought I’d lost you in the crowd.”

“Well,” David replies, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a cigarette, “Your friend’s voice tends to carry.”

Nadia’s stomach drops. 

“Oh – Reilly is – she says things that are –”

David laughs and offers her a cigarette. She brushes his hand as she grasps it and goosebumps cover her entire body. There’s no way he doesn’t notice.

“I appreciate you defending me, but she’s right. I’m definitely more well-versed in Playboy than highbrow literature.” He pauses and lights his cigarette. “Just the pictures though, I can’t actually read.”

Nadia’s jaw goes slack.

“Oh…I'm so --"

Another laugh. He strikes a match and holds it out to her, encouraging her to light her cigarette. She grasps his wrist gently to steady herself. He’s electric; she doesn’t want to let go. He licks his lips and takes another drag.

“I’m kidding. I like poetry.”

_ Of course he does. Of -fucking-course he does. Jesus. _

“That's cool,” she laughs, exhaling a large cloud of smoke. "Poetry is cool."

They sit in silence for a few minutes, alternating between smoking, drinking, and making brief, flirtatious eye contact. Nadia feels butterflies in her stomach, but she’s not sure if it’s the mixture of the alcohol and nicotine or if it’s the intensely bright blue eyes that keep boring into hers. It’s been a long time since she’s felt like this. Helpless. Coursing with adrenaline. Teetering on the edge of feeling out of control. Being with Nathan felt nothing like this - not even when they flirted. She watches David scan the beer garden. His chiseled features further carved out in the low light. Fuck, he’s gorgeous.

“Let’s go for a ride,” he says, his smoky voice cutting through the silence. It sounds more like a command than a suggestion. He crushes his cigarette in the nearby ashtray.

She narrows her eyes in suspicion and takes a long pull on her cigarette.

“My mom told me not to go anywhere with strangers." 

He feigns offence.

“I’m a stranger?” 

“I don’t know anything about you!” she laughs.

“You know my name is David. You know I can’t read.”

“One of those is a lie.”

He reaches forward and begins to gently trace the top of her hand with his index finger. 

“Okay, you got me.” A beat. “You know that I think you’re beautiful.”

Every inch of her body is on fire, pulsing, and screaming at her to leap across the table and do things to him that would, technically, be considered a felony – but only because there are so many people around. She’s sure that her entire face is red as she glances at Reilly, who is drunk and in an intense conversation with Mick. Nadia’s eyes flick back to David. He hasn’t stopped staring at her and his fingers wrap gently around her wrist.

“That is completely unfair,” she says softly.

David chuckles as he pulls his hand away. Nadia bites her lip to keep from making the most desperate, embarrassing, forlorn sound she’s ever made in her life. David tosses back his drink and motions toward the exit.

“Come on.”

_Fuck it._

She downs the very full glass of rum and coke. The liquor stings the back of her throat. She coughs, shakes her head, and gets up.

“I just have to tell Reilly where I’m going.”

“Of course.”

He lingers near the exit while Nadia tugs on the end of Reilly’s shirt. She turns around, bleary-eyed and grinning from ear to ear.

“What’s goin’ on?”

“I’m gonna go for a ride with David.”

“David?”

“Yeah, his name is David.”

Reilly glances toward the entrance, her eyes narrowed by intoxication or suspicion, Nadia couldn’t tell which. 

“Dooooes he have a last name?”

“If I told you, you wouldn’t remember it anyway." 

“Are you saying I don’t care?”

“No, I’m saying that by the time you finish that beer and the four that follow it, you’re going not going to be able to remember much of anything.” 

Reilly pouts. Nadia grasps her best friend’s shoulders and presses their noses together.

“I am going for a ride with David,” she lowers her voice. “I don’t know if I’ll be back.”

Reilly’s mouth forms an O and she lets out a low chuckle.

“I’m really proud of you…you know, for not being so uptight.”

Nadia pushes her away.

“Okay. I’m going now. I love you.”

Nadia attempts to pull away, but Reilly yanks her backward. Nadia almost collapses into her friend. David watches them intently from the entrance.

“Use a condom,” Reilly whispers, her beer-soaked breath practically knocking Nadia over. “Safety fir –"

“I hope you throw up tonight," Nadia hisses.

“BYEEEEE!” Reilly yells. “BYE, DAVID!”

David salutes Reilly as Nadia approaches him.

“She’s such an idiot,” Nadia mutters.

David slips his hand around her waist; she melts into him.

“This way,” he commands.


	2. Strange Brew

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nadia follows David to the boys' cave. What's gonna happen? Vampire stuff, probably.

David’s bike is parked off of the boardwalk, resting against a tree. He hops onto it and smiles at her. The music and noise from the crowd has faded, but Nadia still hears the occasional faint scream.

“I’ve never been on one of these before,” Nadia says, timidly approaching the bike.

“Hold onto me and don’t worry about the rest.”

She climbs onto the back of the bike and wraps her hands around his waist. He’s smaller and more wiry than she would have guessed. The bike revs underneath her and before she can take a breath, she and David take off across the sand. Nadia lets out a panicked scream. Her grip tightens. The wind stings her eyes. She buries her face in the back of David’s shoulder, feeling his body tense as he shifts gears and veers the motorcycle to the right. The engine roars beneath them. David speeds up, Nadia screams again.

“DAVIIIID!”

“HOLD ON!”

Sand and rocks fly through the air; this time, Nadia closes her eyes and presses her face firmly in David’s shoulder, screaming into the fabric of his jacket. She can feel him laughing and the bike suddenly screams to a halt, practically throwing both of them off. She hears his boot hit gravel.

“You can come out now,” he teases.

Nadia raises her head. Waves crash against rocks. They’re teetering on the edge of the cliff. She gasps and scrambles off of the bike, tripping over her own feet like a wounded animal. She spits sand out of her mouth and pushes her tangled mane of long black hair out of her face.

“Are you FUCKING CRAZY?!” she punches him in the arm. “You could have killed us!”

“Don’t like heights, huh,” David remarks, tossing his bike to the ground. He lights another cigarette.

“Flying off a cliff on the back of a motorcycle isn’t exactly how I pictured this night going!” 

David slides toward her. His boots press against the toes of her sneakers. He smells like cheap rum, cigarettes, and salt water. She swallows hard and tries to steady her breathing. His fingers swim through her hair.

“How did you picture this night going?”

“Less panic.”

His arm slips underneath her jacket to grasp her waist. He pulls her closer, savouring the gasp that escapes her throat. David leans in and his lips brush her earlobe.

“You seem fine now.”

“This is a different kind of panic,” she whispers.

He pulls away and she slumps with disappointment. 

“I want to show you something.”

He takes her hand and begins to lead her away from the cliff and down a set of long, rickety wooden stairs that feel like they could crumble beneath the two of them at any moment. The waves spill against them, adding to the instability. David hops down each step with ease, almost like a dancer, while Nadia does her best to keep up. She fumbles through the darkness and grabs on to David’s coat. There’s a dim light coming from inside of what looks like a cave? She can’t quite see.

“This way,” he says softly.

She hesitates for a moment. She’s not sure if she trusts him completely. He did almost get her killed - twice if she counts the stairs. 

“It’s okay,” he encourages. “Come on.”

Nadia takes a deep breath.

_I’m either gonna get laid or murdered,_ she thinks. _And I’m juuuuust stupid enough to find out which one it’s gonna be_. 

Wordlessly, he leads her inside. Broken pieces of old furniture, posters, and what looks like a few old beds covered with decaying pieces of fabric. It somewhat resembles what must have been a lobby. Moonlight shines down from the cracks in the rock. Candles litter the ground and surround an old, crumbling fountain. The entire place smells musty, ancient, and nothing like soil or rock. It smells more like an animal’s den. There’s something sickly sweet lingering beneath it all, but Nadia can’t pinpoint what it is. 

David leaps down a set of lopsided stairs that act as an entrance way to the rest of the cave. 

“Here we are.”

“This is…” she takes another deep breath, jumping down with a gentle thud beside him. “Wow.”

“This was the hottest resort in Santa Carla back about eighty years ago. Too bad they built it right on the fault.”

Nadia wanders away from David. She picks up broken lamps, busted picture frames, and ancient pieces of tile. She can feel his eyes on her.

“This is kind of amazing,” she says wistfully. 

“It’s our home.”

Nadia pauses.

“Home?”

“It’s a long story,” David replies. He plunks down in a large black wheelchair and pulls two cigarettes out of his jacket pocket. Nadia accepts and lights hers using a nearby candle.

“I’ve got time for a long story.”

David takes a long pull on his cigarette and studies her - a predator sizing up its prey. Nadia’s heart begins to pound quickly. Maybe this was the wrong thing to say. David clears his throat and sinks into his chair. 

“My brothers and I live here; have for a few years now.”

“Where are your parents?”

“Dead,” he says flatly. “Car accident. I guess it wasn’t that long of a story.”

“I’m sorry.”

He leans forward and flicks his cigarette into the fountain.

“Don’t be. I’m not.”

He stands up and strolls toward a bright red filing cabinet that’s covered in dust and cobwebs. David yanks open one of the drawers and pulls something out. The low light makes it difficult for Nadia’s eyes to fully adjust. He saunters back slowly holding a dusty wine bottle covered in jewels and silver. Nadia almost laughs at its garishness but distracts herself with taking a final drag of her cigarette.

“Drink?” He asks.

“That looks like it’s been open for a thousand years,” she replies cautiously.

David chuckles and holds it up to the moonlight to examine it.

“We’re not exactly a five star resort anymore, but I promise this is fresh.”

He thrusts the bottle out toward her. Nadia’s fingers wrap around it before her brain can speed up to question her actions. She yanks the cork out and takes a big swig. It’s sour and metallic on her tongue. It doesn't taste like any wine she's familiar with. Nadia suspects it might be off, but she swallows it with a small grimace and hands it back to David. He takes a sip, eyes closed, and blissful. David takes a moment to savour the experience as he places the bottle on the edge of the fountain. Nadia swallows hard, feeling an intense heat overwhelm her entire body. Before she can even begin to consider this new feeling, David closes the space between them and reaches out for her hand. Nadia stands, dizzy and unsure. The wine is hitting her much faster than expected. Her limbs tingle and the room suddenly seems brighter and more colourful. David wraps his arms around her and she relaxes into his embrace and looks up into his bright blue eyes.

“Good girl,” he growls.

He captures her lips, kissing softly at first, but growing hungrier by the second. He’s cold, but she doesn’t care. She matches his fervor and they both attempt to devour one another. Nadia’s fingers sink into the back of his neck, trying to pull him closer to her. His teeth graze against, and then pull on, her bottom lip as a growl escapes his lips.

“Jesus Christ,” she whimpers against his mouth. He tastes incredible - like sweetness and cigarettes and rum and metal. She wants more, and growls, surprising herself.

David lets out a soft chuckle as he shrugs his coat off. He picks her up and carries her to one of the beds in the back of the cave. Nadia instinctively wraps her legs around his waist all while refusing to pull her lips away from his. David breaks the kiss, unhooks her legs from his waist, and tosses her onto the bed. As Nadia hits the mattress, she feels it collapse and open up beneath the weight of her body. She’s falling through it, but doesn’t try to fight the feeling. It’s oddly calming. David and his half-mischevious, half predatory grin disappear in a whirlwind of confusion and blackness.

She awakens to find Reilly’s face just inches from hers.

“It’s seven p.m., you fucking idiot. GET UP!”

Nadia’s body jerks violently with fear and she tumbles off of the bed. She feels drunk.

“WHATTHEFUCK!”

Reilly looks her up and down with a somewhat disgusted look on her face.

“You look like shit.”

“Where’s David?!” Nadia snaps, glancing around nervously. “Why am I at your place?”

“Relax,” Reilly replies, slumping onto her bed. “He dropped you off last night. You’re right, he’s kind of hot up close. Could do without the earring, though.”

Nadia runs her hands through her hair and blinks furiously. He head thuds like a jackhammer. It’s too bright in here. Nadia swishes past her friend and yanks the curtains closed.

“What the fuck happened last night?”

“You got a dick hangover or a beer hangover?” Reilly asks.

“What’s a dick hangover?”

“Something I made up.”

Nadia sighs, rolls her eyes, and slumps down on the bed next to Reilly.

“Did he say anything to you when he dropped me off?”

“Nope. Just knocked on the door, introduced himself, and dropped you off. You seemed drunk, but pretty lucid."

Nadia runs through the previous night in her brain. She remembers his mouth, the fear in the pit of her stomach, her legs wrapping around his waist. Another wave of dizziness hits her.

_The wine. Everything went south after that._

“What happened?”

“He took me to this old, abandoned hotel that was underground for some reason? We had some wine. We started to…and then I woke up here.”

Reilly stands and grabs a pack of cigarettes off of the top of her dresser. She tosses one to Nadia. 

“Hey, I’m going back to the Boardwalk tonight. Wanna come with me?”

“Excuse me!” Nadia shouts, flinging her unlit cigarette onto the floor. “I’m having a personal fucking crisis here!”

“You didn’t let me finish my sentence,” Reilly counters.

“You very clearly ended it with a question.”

“I was about to add another question.”

“Which is?”

“Are you…okay…?” 

Silence. Reilly offers a half-hearted smile of encouragement that makes Nadia want to punch her in the nose.

“OF COURSE I’M NOT FUCKING OKAY!” Nadia screams.

“Okay, calm down! My parents are —”

“I DON’T GIVE A SHIT! Reilly, something _super_ fucked up happened last night and I need to talk to David! What if he drugged me or something?”

“Then we go to the Boardwalk and kick the shit out of him and his bike."

The wind blows Reilly's curtain open and a beam of sunlight hits Nadia directly in the eye. She drops to her knees, covers her face with her hands, and lets out something in between a groan and a scream.

“I need a pair of fucking sunglasses,” she mumbles through her fingers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The rest of the boys WILL show up eventually! I know I keep promising this! I just really wanna flesh this part of the story out!


	3. Chapter 3

They prowl the boardwalk as the sun sets. Nadia insists on wearing the biggest pair of aviators that Reilly owns in order to block out the dying sunlight. People swim past them carrying giant stuffed animals and sloshing beer on the boardwalk. Nadia can hear their heartbeats. She can smell their joy, their fear, their vulnerability. 

She smokes nervously, electric against the railing they’re supposed to be “casually leaning against” (Reilly’s words) while Reilly picks disgustedly at her cotton candy.

“You know, I don’t even like this stuff,” Reilly muses. “It’s so deeply unsatisfying. It’s like someone burped sugar in your face, but you have to eat it.”

“What the fuck is wrong with you?”

“I’m just thinking out loud!” Reilly shouts, chuckling. “Trying to break whatever fucking tension is happening in that big brain of yours.”

“If you hate it so much, why are you eating it?”

Reilly shrugs.

“The donut machine was broken.”

“Donut machine?”

“Yeah,” Reilly licks the crystallized blue sugar from her fingertips. “The thing they dunk the donuts in.”

“You mean a deep fryer.”

“Yeah. Whatever. It was busted — do you want this?”

“Just leave it on the ground, some kid’ll pick it up.”

“…I paid for it.”

“Then eat it, Reilly! I don’t know what to tell you!”

Reilly’s eyes narrow and she picks angrily at her Mt. Everest of cotton candy. Nadia smokes silently, her eyes scanning every person who walks by to see if she can spot David. She thinks that she sees him a handful of times, but the hair isn’t nearly blonde enough. 

“What if he doesn’t even show up?” Nadia whispers.

“We go and get drunk and come back tomorrow.”

Nadia sighs nervously. She feels Reilly’s gaze on her. Nadia turns to find her best friend sympathetic and almost tearful.

“Hey, it’s gonna be okay. We’ll fix this.”

Nadia stares back and gives a weak half-smile.

“That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

“I literally complimented your butt in those exact jeans you’re wearing yesterday after class.”

“Okay,” Nadia chuckles, correcting herself. “Second nicest.”

Reilly whacks Nadia’s shoulder violently. Nadia hisses in pain.

“I see him! I see him!”

A small group of young men on motorcycles stop on the sand beside the boardwalk. They hop the fence with ease. Nadia spots David as he floats to the front of the pack and maneuvers his way through the crowd. The faces of the other three come into focus quickly: a brunette, a tall blonde with long hair, and a smaller curly-headed young man with large eyes and an open face. David doesn’t seem to care to notice anyone they pass, but they notice him - especially the women. He’s focused, while the two blondes behind him are punching each other and leaping onto one another’s backs. Nadia feels her heart begin to pound and her stomach knots so tightly she thinks she might spew over the side of the boardwalk. The group is moving closer to them. Out of the corner of her eye, Nadia spots Reilly tossing her mound of cotton candy over the side of the railing. 

Every muscle in Nadia’s body is tense, and screams at her to push herself off of the railing. As David’s presence looms closer to her, she takes a deep breath and strolls toward him. He grins as he approaches her.

“Why aren’t I surprised to see you here?” He asks.

“Can I talk to you for a second? _Now_?”

Nadia pulls David away from the group by the lapel of his jacket.

“What did you give me to drink last night?”

David smirks.

“Hey!” She shouts, shoving him backward. He grins through it all. “This isn’t fucking funny! I could barely look out my window this morning — evening - without wanting to rip my fucking eyes out. I know I blacked out last night!” 

David brushes the hair out of her face and drags his thumb across her bottom lip, capturing her chin. She can hear her heart thudding against her chest like a drum. Her blood roars; David’s eyes flick to the base of her neck. 

“You’re one of us now, Nadia.”

“What does that mean?!” Nadia exclaims, panicked and flushed. “Everything is too bright, everyone is too loud. Even their bodies — David, I can hear people’s heartbeats. I’m going fucking crazy. What did you do to me?!”

“You fell asleep and I took you home,” David says, his expression flashing to one of deep sincerity. Nadia feels a sense of relief and comfort roll over her. “Sometimes it does that to people.”

“What does what to people? What was in that wine?!”

He leans into her neck, barely brushing his lips against her skin. Every hair on her body stands on end and she feels like she might pass out. What the fuck is this guy’s deal?

“There are some things that have to be shown to you,” he says, his voice barely above a whisper. He pulls away from her. His eyes are golden; his face contorted into something twisted and angry. He’s still grinning. Nadia’s breath quickens and her mind cannot quite comprehend what she’s seeing until Reilly’s voice cuts in to the tension between her and David.

“NADIA! You okay?”

Nadia glances at Reilly and looks back at David. His face has softened back into the one she remembers.

“What are you?” She asks him.

“I’ll show you.” He grabs her hands. “Come with us tonight.”

His gaze is intense. She wants to tell him she just wants to go home to sit in her bedroom with the lights off while her anxiety spins out like the wheels on an out of control car. Instead, she follows him toward his bike, pulled by something in her chest that she can’t explain. 

“Paul, Marko, Dwayne…let’s go!” David calls. 

Reilly approaches the group, her expression torn between one of bemusement and irritation.

“You’re ditching me?” She asks pointedly.

“You’re welcome to come with us, girl” one of the blondes purrs. He's wearing a long black jacket, a mesh t-shirt, and white pants.

“Oh, I’m _definitely_ good - but thank you so much for the offer,” Reilly counters.

“Suit yourself,” David purrs as he climbs onto his bike. Nadia follows and wraps her arms around his waist.

“I’ll call you tomorrow?” She asks, wide-eyed. "Don't be mad."

Reilly studies her for a few moments. She looks unsure. Suspicious. Finally, she lets out a small sigh and shrugs helplessly.

“Do everything I would do.”

“Absolutely not!” Nadia calls as David revs the engine on the bike. His brothers follow suit; the roar of the engines drowns out Reilly’s reply. She laughs and shakes her head as they soar off of the boardwalk and into the night.

***

The group rolls up to a decrepit gas station on the outskirts of town. The bikes rumble to a halt.

“What are we doing?” Nadia asks as David guides her off of the bike.

“You could call it a supply run,” Paul remarks.

The others laugh. Nadia’s stomach tightens. She follows the group into the gas station. There’s a lone cashier working - an older portly man in his late forties with a face like a french bulldog. He’s leaned up against the counter watching something on a small portable television. Nadia can hear the faint sound of a laugh track through the intermittent static. The cashier’s eyes narrow the moment they open the door. Paul and Marko stroll toward a shelf near the back and begin to pick up small mickeys of vodka and whiskey. They jam them into their jacket pockets with an air of confidence that Nadia both admires and finds incredibly stupid.  
  
“Hey!” The cashier bellows. “Put those back and get the fuck outta here!”

David snakes toward the man, his eyes golden and his mouth set in a firm sneer. The man at the cash register reaches down and pulls a shotgun from underneath the counter. 

“I said get the fuck outta here,” he warns. The boys laugh, and with a flick of David’s head, they leap at him, knocking the shotgun out of his hand. Nadia stands by helpless as the man screams. Dwayne grabs his wrist and wrenches his arm behind his back, smashing his face down onto the counter, while Marko tosses the shotgun toward the door. David drags a long, pointed fingernail across the man’s cheek, drawing a thin line of blood. He licks the remnants from his fingernail and Dwayne grabs the man by the hair, wrenching him upright and forcing his right ear toward his right shoulder. 

David turns to Nadia.

“Your turn,” he says, his face twisted and monstrous. 

Nadia bolts out the front door without a second thought and runs as fast and as far as her legs carry her. She hears the boys whooping and calling her name in the distance and begs her muscles to hold out until she’s home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for the wonderful comments! I'm very excited to keep writing this! I think this chapter is a little shorter, but I'm currently working on chapter 4 <3


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: smut (basically my first time writing it and i had to read A LOT of it to figure it out lol), this is a shorter chapter, but i really wanted to get it up. thanks everyone for the comments and kudos! y'all are the best!

Nadia climbs through her window, panting, sweating, trying not to be sick on herself. She tumbles onto her bedroom floor with a loud thud and immediately goes limp. Her breathing is heavy. Her skin is cold and clammy; her lungs and muscles sting and cramp from running so fast. Every time she closes her eyes, she David’s face - his eyes golden; burning with thirst and rage. She remembers the hunger she felt as David offered her the cashier’s exposed neck. Something deep inside of her wanted to rip into the man’s flesh and tear through him until there was nothing left.

A wave of nausea hits and she drags her limp and exhausted body toward the trash can beside her bed. She tries to vomit but nothing comes out. Nausea turns to pain that sears deep inside of her gut. A sob escapes her throat and she hears the window rattle behind her. She rolls onto her side and sees David floating outside, staring at her with that fucking grin. Blood stains his lips and face. With her last ounce of strength, she leaps over her bed and her bedside table falls to the floor with a loud crash.

“Nadia,” he calls, almost taunting her.

“Fuck off!” 

“Nadia, let me in.”

His voice is calm and low, but commanding. Her muscles move to obey him but she stops herself.

“The window’s open!”

“Nadia!” He barks. 

Her head pops up from behind the bed. The toes of his boots are resting gently on the outside of the window ledge. His eyes are burning into hers while the rest of his face remains still and calm. 

“I want to explain things to you.” His tone walks a fine line between sweetness and disciplinarian. “I’m not going to hurt you, but you have to _let me in_.”

She stands, shakily. He’s the only one who can give her the answers she needs.

“You can come in.” Her voice is a small, terrified squeak.

David grabs the top of the window ledge and gently swings in, landing silently on the floor. He starts toward her and Nadia instinctively backs up against the wall.

“Don’t touch me,” she warns. She holds her hands out in front of her - as if that could do anything after what she saw at the gas station. David holds back laughter.

“I told you, I’m not going to hurt you. Come here.”

“What did you do to that guy? What did you to do _me_?! Every time I close my eyes, I see —”

“You see what you are,” David finishes.

“I’m not a killer, David!” Nadia shrieks. “I’m a fucking college student!”

He glides over to her and grabs her shoulders before she can run for the bedroom door. 

“Look at me,” he says softly.

Nadia meets his icy blue eyes as he takes his face in her hands.

“All we are doing is surviving,” he whispers. “Our kind have lived this way for thousands of years. We’ve hunted and travelled together as a family. We’re just trying to find our place in the world.”

Nadia feels tears sting her eyes. Her chest swirls with anger and confusion. David seems to sense what she’s feeling. He leans in and kisses her softly and runs his hands through her hair to comfort her. Nadia melts into his arms, helpless and exhausted. The blood on his lips stirs the hunger at the pit of her stomach. She moans. He breaks the kiss and presses his nose to hers. 

“You’ll never get sick. You’ll never grow old. You’ll never die…I’d say the perks outweigh everything else.”

“What’s gonna happen to me?”

“You’re going to be fine.” he says calmly as he releases her and plunks down onto the bed. “You’re already turning. Sensitive to sunlight?”

She nods.

“A hunger or a thirst you can’t quench?”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.” He pulls out a fifth of whiskey and hands it to her. “You’re going to have to feed soon.”

Nadia cracks the bottle open and takes several big gulps. 

“You mean kill soon.”

He shrugs.

“That’s a matter of perspective.”

She moves toward the bed and sits beside him, setting the bottle down on the floor. She thinks about the cave, about the wine bottle, about his mouth on hers - anything to take her mind off of the taste of the blood in her mouth.

“That was your blood in that wine bottle last night.”

“I knew you’d figure it out.”

Nadia chews nervously on her thumb nail. David inches closer to her and drags his fingers gently up her thigh. Her heart hammers against her ribcage; the air between them feels so thick she can barely breathe. He drags his lips up her neck, capturing her earlobe with his teeth. She shivers.

_Fuck it._

She turns her body toward him, lifts herself up onto the bed so that she’s sitting on her haunches, and rips her beaten denim jacket off. David lets out a surprised laugh as Nadia climbs on top of him, capturing his lips with a kind of frenzy she has never felt before. Limbs fly in all directions and her bed squeaks softly as they scramble to remove clothing. He kicks his boots off while his fingers fumble with the buttons on her dress shirt. It doesn’t come off fast enough for his liking. He lets out a frustrated groan and rips it off of her torso. Buttons clatter across the bedroom floor. Nadia laughs against his mouth.

“I’ll buy you a new one,” he growls, kissing her again. His fingers trace the curves of her body, digging into her waist and threatening to leave bruises.

Nadia pulls away and grabs the bottom of his t-shirt. David lets her pull it up over his head, revealing his pale, wiry frame. She takes a moment to look at him. Her breathing is heavy and her stomach is in knots. David reaches up to stroke her cheek.

“What?” He asks, smirking.

“You’re beautiful,” she whispers.

David smiles and flips her over onto her back. His lips glide down her body, nipping at her skin as she shudders beneath him. She feels him slide her jeans off and hears a small ripping sound. Her eyes spring open to see him ripping a line clean through her panties with a sharpened fingernail. He grins and tosses them to the floor.

“Perks,” he says matter-of-factly before sinking his teeth into her inner thigh. Nadia feels blood trickle down her skin. She cries out, pounding her fist into the mattress.

“FUCK, DAVID!”

David laughs into her skin, retracting his fangs and kisses her. The blood on his lips tastes sweet - she feels something primal stirring inside of her and they become a tangle of tongues and clicking teeth. His fingers delicately tease her clit and Nadia bucks her hips in response. She pulls away to gasp for air, letting out a guttural moan in the process. David is busy dragging his teeth across her neck while his thumb works furious circles around her clit. His hand pulls away from her and underneath the sound of her own ragged breath, she hears his belt unbuckle. Nadia wraps her hand around his length and David snarls softly in her ear. 

He enters her slowly, savouring her moans and the way her eyes roll back. His thrusts are languid; teasing. She cries out in frustration and wraps her legs around his waist, pulling him deeper. He lets out a dark, gravelly moan. Nadia smirks up at him. His thrusts become quicker - more violent. Nadia’s hips match his. She moans his name over and over again, until her own orgasm rolls over her like a wave and she’s trembling beneath him. David becomes animalistic in response, thrusting harder and harder - until she feels like she might break. She continues to match his manic rhythm until he lets out a hoarse, gravely groan as he spills into her. She stares up at him, heavy-lidded and panting. David rolls off of her, props himself up onto his side and kisses her softly.

“I could get used to that,” he mumbles.

He slides off of the bed and moves toward his jacket. Nadia’s heart sinks.

“Are you leaving?”

“No,” he laughs, “I’m getting my smokes.”

He pops one in his mouth and strolls toward the window, pulling the navy blue curtains closed. Nadia’s eyes take a moment to adjust to the darkness as she hears the grinding of David’s lighter and his face is illuminated for a brief moment. He crawls onto the bed and passes the cigarette to her. She takes a long drag and sighs.

“So what happens now?”

He rolls onto his side and kisses her shoulder. His eyes are wide and his mouth breaks into a wide, mischievous grin. 

“You wanna go again?”

She laughs.

“My question was more of a pressing one, but yeah…I could do that again,” she laughs.


	5. Chapter 5

The sound of her phone ringing stirs Nadia from a deep sleep. David is out cold beside her. Nadia fumbles for the phone and almost falls out of bed in the process.

“Yeah,” she croaks.

“That dick better have been worth it last night.”

Nadia stumbles out of the bed and takes the phone into the hallway. David doesn’t move.

“Reilly, I’m sorry,” she whispers.

“When have I ever ditched you for a dude?”

“You left me at a bus stop to go and meet up with Brian Thompson when we were fifteen and I had to find my own way home.”

“Okay, well, that was a great opportunity because he sold really good weed.”

“Half of it was from his mom's spice cabinet!” Nadia hisses.

“Whatever!” Reilly counters. “Okay? Other than that one time, when else —”

“Summer of tenth grade you ditched me at the beach to go and give Eric Wilkinson a handjob in the bathroom. You took forever and I got so bored that I fell asleep in the sun and woke up with blisters on my ass.”

“That last part really isn’t my fault. His dick wouldn’t —”

“GAAAAHHHH!” Nadia lets out a disgusted cry, waving her hands in front of her face. “I don’t wanna hear about Eric Wilkinson’s dick. You ditched me - and I’m blaming you for the sunburn.”

Reilly is quiet for a moment. Nadia pokes at the bite mark on her thigh. It’s already beginning to heal. She looks up at the sun spilling through the skylight and feels her head beginning to pulse. A wave of exhaustion washes over her. She can hear her mother’s ancient clock radio ticking from the kitchen downstairs. Her parents will be home from Paris in two weeks. 

She longs for the smell of coffee creeping into her bedroom at the crack of dawn and the sound of her parents’ laughter as they cook breakfast together.

“How was it, though?” Reilly’s voice cuts through the silence.

“What?”

“You know what I’m talking about. How was it?”

“Oh!” Nadia can’t keep the smile off of her face. She can still feel David’s cool lips on her skin. She flushes. “Yeah, it was…it was really good.”

“Then it was worth ditching me — hey, listen. It’s Mick’s night off and he wants to hang out on the boardwalk with me. Maybe you can bring David and we’ll double date?”

Nadia bites her lip. She wants to tell Reilly everything - about the blood, the cashier, about David and his brothers; about her. 

“I’ll ask him when he wakes up.”

“He’s still there?!”

“Yeah,” Nadia giggles. She hears Reilly laugh softly on the other end. “I’ll call you later, okay?”

“We’re going to be at the boardwalk around midnight tonight. Just meet me by the ferris wheel.”

“Seriously? It’s so grimy over there.”

“Excuse me? You’re fucking a dude who looks like a homeless version of David Bowie, so don’t talk to me about grimy.”

“He actually smells really good.”

“I doubt that.”

Nadia laughs. “I’ll see you later.”

“Love you.”

“Love you.”

She hangs up the phone and leans back against the bedroom door for a moment. The weight of everything David told her last night is beginning to sink in. She feels a hunger growing in the pit of her stomach that she knows she won’t be able to satisfy until she makes a kill.

“Nadia?” She hears David call, his voice deeper and gravelly from sleep.

Nadia climbs to her feet and brings the phone back into the bedroom, placing it on top of her turned over nightstand. The room is pitch black compared to the hallway and she’s careful to quickly shut the bedroom door to block out any excess sunlight. David is lying on his side, fighting sleep. Her eyes adjust quickly and she takes him in for a moment. He’s so pale, he’s almost glowing against her forest green bedding. 

“Where’d you go?” He mumbles.

“Reilly called,” she says softly, climbing back into bed. David wraps his arms around her and buries his face in her neck.

“What time is it?”

“Five o’clock.”

“Mmm.”

Within seconds, he’s fast asleep against her. She watches him for a moment. His chest is still. A chill runs down her spine. She doesn’t remember slipping into unconsciousness.

***

She awakens to David placing gentle kisses on her neck while his fingers dance through her long black hair. She moans and blinks until the world comes into focus. 

“Hello,” she giggles.

“Tonight’s the night,” David purrs.

“Hmm?”

“We’re going hunting.”

His eyes flash golden and he bites down on her neck - not enough to break the skin, but enough to leave a mark. Nadia moans in response, but tries to stay focused. 

“Fuck,” Nadia whispers. “I promised I would go to the boardwalk with Reilly.”

His head snaps up, eyes sparkling.

“Perfect spot,” he says with a wry smile.

“I can’t,” she says softly. “I can’t do it.”

David sighs and takes her face in his hands.

“I’ll teach you everything you need to know.”

“I can’t kill someone, David.”

“The longer you ignore it, the worse it’s going to get.” He brushes her hair away from her face. “You’ll end up hurting someone close to you. The way we hunt is just…easier."

She's quiet for a moment and fiddles with a loose thread on the comforter.

“Why did you pick me?”

He slips out of the bed and yanks his pants up over his narrow hips.

“I can’t explain it,” he says flatly. “But there’s no turning back now. You can’t fight this.”

The hunger in the pit of her stomach returns. The longer they talk about David’s plan for her tonight, the less in control she feels. She pictures the cashier, and the veins in his neck pulsing beneath the fluorescent lights. The hunger shifts; begins to burn. She breathes deeply and puts her head in her hands to ease the sensation. David watches with a furrowed brow. The burning slowly begins to recede. Shakily, she gets up and they dress in silence. Nadia goes to check her reflection in the mirror and sees nothing. Her heart stops for a moment.

“You’ve gotta be shitting me,” she growls. David chuckles behind her and wraps his arms around her waist.

“You’re beautiful,” he breathes. “Trust me.”

Nadia waves her hand in front of the mirror, still fascinated to see nothing there. David releases her, whips open the curtains, and jumps onto the windowsill. He glances back at her as a dark grin spreads across his face.

“Come on.”

“What are you doing?”

“My bike’s down there.”

“I have a front door, David.”

He rolls his eyes and laughs.

“Hi. Vampire.”

Without another word, he dives into the darkness. Nadia runs to the window just in time to see him land and climb onto his bike.

“Come on!” He yells.

“Yeah, I’m gonna use the front door!”

“Nadia.” His voice has an edge to it. “Do you trust me?”

“Yes?”

“Jump.”

“Okay, one time I tried this because I thought I was being really sneaky and cool and I landed in the bushes and hurt —”

“We don’t have all night!” David cuts her off, half impatient and half laughing. “Jump!”

She climbs onto the windowsill and takes a deep breath. Her knuckles are turning bone white as they death grip the sides of the window. She looks like some kind of terrified, denim-clad gargoyle, hair blowing in her face and obscuring her vision slightly. Another deep breath. She hates heights, always has. Even standing on a chair to change a lightbulb makes her nervous. Last night, when she was climbing up the ladder to her window, she had to force herself not to look down. 

David watches from the ground, clearly amused and enjoying himself. His smug smile makes her want to hurl herself out the window simply out of spite - but fear catches her before the impulse to take the leap does. The house is beginning to feel the same height as the Eiffel Tower.

_Aim for beyond the bushes. Beyond the bushes._

“Okay,” she whispers. “Okay, you can do this. You can do this.”

“Just push off and —”

“I KNOW, ASSHOLE!” She shrieks.

David’s shoulders shake with silent laughter. Nadia snarls, takes one more deep breath, and pushes herself out the window. She closes her eyes, preparing to plummet into her mother’s prized rose bushes, but to her surprise, she glides much more slowly through the air. Her eyes open as she misses the bushes and David’s bike completely. Her body begins to sink to the ground about ten feet away from where he’s parked. She kicks and stretches her legs out, desperate to feel the ground and finally comes to a halt - but not before she tumbles onto the grass. She clamours to her feet quickly and pushes her hair out of her face, laughing triumphantly.

“WHAT WAS THAT?!” She screams.

David slow claps from his bike.

“BRAVOOOOO!” He cries.

“DID YOU SEE THAT?!” Nadia shouts as she crashes into him and wraps her arms around his waist. “That was awesome!”

“That was…” he clears his throat and stifles another laugh. “That was something.”

She whacks him on the shoulder and climbs onto the back of the motorcycle.

“I’ll get better!”

“You’ll have an eternity to practice.”

David revs his engine and they speed off toward the boardwalk as darkness fully settles onto Santa Carla.


	6. Chapter 6

David’s bike rumbles to a halt in front of the boardwalk. The two dismount and David takes her hand, guiding her through the crowd. He seems to know exactly where he’s going as they whiz past bright lights, sweaty bodies, and shrieks. David stops at the carousel where the rest of his brothers are standing, smoking and rough housing. A stern-looking security guard watches from a distance, doing his best to look as threatening as possible. His presence barely registers to the boys. David gives him a small nod, which seems to infuriate and fluster the man.

“Boys,” David drawls, slinging his arm over Nadia’s shoulder. “Got anything for tonight?”

“Not yet,” the smaller, curly-haired blonde replies, crushing his cigarette butt beneath his boot. “We’ve got time.”

There are no formal introductions, they simply behave as though Nadia has been with them for years.

“Nadia?” A voice from behind her calls out. She glances over her shoulder.

“Nathan. What are you doing here?”

He’s wearing his stupid letterman jacket that she always hated, a dark blue polo shirt, and khakis. He’s the pinnacle of nerdiness. For a moment, Nadia feels embarrassed that she wasted so much time on him. She hears Marko and Paul snicker from the carousel. David releases her as she turns to face Nathan, but his hand lingers possessively on her lower back. 

“I was sort of hoping I’d run into you.” Nathan laughs and runs a hand through his short, dark hair. “I didn’t realize you’d made so many new…friends.”

“Yeah. This is, uh, David, Marko, Paul, and Dwayne.”

_How did I know that?_

Nathan leans forward to shake David’s hand. David stares at him with a microscopic, yet menacing grin until he withdraws his greeting. The other boys giggle behind him. Nadia can feel the tension and nervous energy in the air. She can hear Nathan’s heart hammering against his ribcage. He’s scared. She can smell his sweat; his blood. She steadies herself.

“Can I talk to you for a second?” Nathan pauses and glances at David. “Alone?”

Nadia comes back to reality and feels three small taps on her lower back. David leans into her neck.

“Don’t go too far,” he whispers. It almost feels like a warning.

They walk a few feet from the carousel and Nathan leans on the boardwalk railing.

“I haven’t heard from you in days. I left messages.”

“I haven’t been home a lot.”

He sighs and nervously runs a hand through his hair. Nadia looks over her shoulder. David and the rest of the boys are on the carousel watching her every move.

“Nadia, I just want to talk —”

“What do you wanna talk about? That I walked in on you fucking Heather Robinson the other night?” She leans into him. “Is that it?”

“If you had listened to my messages, I would have been able to explain --”

“That you’re a lying sack of shit?” Nadia challenges.

Her heart races as she pushes down the urge to tackle him and rip his fucking throat out because it’s what he deserves.

“I didn’t mean it, Nadia!”

She cackles.

“Oh! Oh, how sweet of you to tell me that you didn’t mean it — because it makes me feel SO. MUCH. BETTER!” 

She winds her hand back and slaps him across the face. Nathan’s muscular body goes flying across the boardwalk. Nadia gasps and instantly covers her mouth. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees David hop off of the carousel. Her eyes meet his. He’s grinning while Marko, Paul, and Dwayne laugh maniacally behind him. The boys stroll toward Nathan and Dwayne picks his limp body up off of the ground and pushes him toward David, like a cat playing with a mouse.

“I think Nadia has made herself perfectly clear,” David calls out. He slaps Nathan’s shoulder, causing it to twitch. “You should go.”

Nathan wrenches himself from David’s grip and shoves him back. Hard.

“Fuck off, man! I’m trying to talk to my fuckin’ girlfriend.”

David lunges forward, grabs him by the throat, and lifts him off of the ground. Nathan’s sneakers just barely touch. He struggles and grunts as David and the boys size him up, smiling.

“She’s not your girlfriend.”

Nathan’s face begins to go red. He gasps and sputters for breath. David’s smile has faded into a twisted snarl. Nadia’s eyes flick nervously to the security guard who is now strolling away from the carousel with his back to the current situation. Nobody else seems to pay attention to what’s happening. 

_Oh, so THIS is why so many people get murdered._

Nadia approaches and gently puts her hand on his shoulder.

“David,” she whispers. “Put him down.”

David’s grip tightens. Nathan coughs and gasps for breath.

“David, please. It’s okay.”

He releases Nathan, who collapses with a loud thunk onto the boardwalk. He scrambles to his feet, red-faced while tears form tiny rivulets down his cheeks.

“You’re fucking crazy, man!”

Spittle flies out of his mouth and he chokes back a sob. Nadia feels sorry for him for a moment. David chuckles.

“Dwayne? Didn’t I tell our friend here to leave?”

“Yeeeeaaahhhhh,” Dwayne drawls. “Yeah, I think you did.”

Nathan sprints down the boardwalk, bumping into people and stumbling over his own feet as he runs. 

“Feeding time, boys,” David snarls.

Nadia pales and turns to him.

“You’re not serious.”

David lights a cigarette.

“I told you earlier - the way we hunt is just easier.”

“So you’re vigilante vampires?”

“Not exactly, but we’re always striving for perfection.”

She shoves him backward, almost as hard as she hit Nathan. David doesn't move.

“This isn’t a joke!”

He grabs her roughly by the shoulders and pulls her close.

“He hurt you,” David hisses. “Don’t you want to see him pay?”

“I —”

He grits his teeth and his eyes flash golden.

“Aren’t you _hungry_?”

She cranes her head to look at the rest of the boys who either shrug or snicker in response. Nadia’s body aches; she’s dizzy. She knows she can’t keep the monster bottled up for much longer - and David is making a very convincing argument. She remembers the party - the night she met David. She walked upstairs to try to find Nathan and opened the door to his parent’s bedroom. There he was: writhing on top of Heather Robinson like a dying fish. Anger swells in her chest and she suppresses a snarl. David kisses her forehead, snapping her back to reality. 

“There’s nothing wrong with what we are. I told you that.”

“I know you did. When I think about what he —” she sighs and collects her thoughts. “I might just be pissed off enough to go along with this.”

He chuckles.

“Come on. I’ll teach you everything you need to know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a shorter chapter. I'm sorry, I've been really busy with finals and prepping for the fall semester, but I really wanted to get something up for y'all. My semester is almost done, so I'll be writing a lot more :) Thanks for reading! <3


	7. Chapter 7

Nadia and the boys smoke a joint on the boardwalk, perched on the railing. They watch the crowds in silence. She checks her watch. 11pm. She sighs. 

“Are you sure this is gonna work?” She asks.

“Look at you,” David says, grinning. “It’s gonna work.”

Nadia flushes and smiles at him, but the moment is cut short by a sharp, burning pain in the middle of her chest. She cries out, jumps off of the railing, and doubles over. The boardwalk feels like it’s spinning beneath her. David leaps off the railing, followed by the rest of the boys while Nadia gasps and groans in agony, trying to get to her feet. Her chest feels like it’s made of lead.

“Breathe,” David whispers. “It’ll pass.”

“I can’t,” she squeaks out through gritted teeth.

“She needs to eat,” Paul says softly.

“I’ve been trying to tell her that,” David hisses. “She doesn’t listen.”

She’d punch him if she weren’t currently preoccupied with the searing pain that’s currently wracking her entire body. She twitches, feels the muscles in her ribs soften, allowing her to take in more air. The pain fades as quickly as it came. She inhales a little more deeply each time as David helps her to her feet. He gently cradles her face in his hands. Marko stares at him, slightly surprised, as though he’s never seen this kind of tenderness from David before. Paul and Dwayne hop gracefully back onto the boardwalk railing and continue smoking.

“You’re okay, gorgeous,” David whispers.

She nods and lets him guide her back to the railing. He lights a cigarette, takes a long drag, and passes it to her. She takes a few puffs and passes it back as her body relaxes and the pain she just experienced becomes a different memory.

“What the fuck was that?”

“The thirst,” he replies, stuffing the cigarette between his teeth. “You’re not going to hold out for much longer.”

She shoves her hair out of her face and sighs. Through the crowd, she spots Nathan taking a swig out of a small silver flask. He stumbles slightly and leans against the Whack-a-Mole booth.

“I see him,” she announces. 

David wraps an arm around her shoulder and pulls her close. His scent makes her head buzz. He leans into her and brushes his lips against her jawline.

“Lead him behind the bathrooms to where our bikes are. We’ll keep our distance until you’re finished.”

“You get off on this, don’t you?”

“Vampire,” he hisses. “Remember?”

“Cute," she bites back sarcastically.

David chuckles as Marko gently nudges Nadia to pluck the joint from his fingers. She takes one final puff and jumps off of the railing. Nathan’s eyes are closing and his head is now being fully supported by the Whack-a-Mole booth.

“Okay,” she breathes and begins to head toward him.

“Make it quick!” Marko calls out. “We’re hungry!”

Nadia raises her middle finger high in the air behind her and keeps walking. She approaches Nathan with caution, watching with a strange fascination as he fights to stay conscious. This should be easy, and relatively painless for him. Her heart is a jackhammer, rattling her ribcage and she takes a deep breath to steady herself. She watches Nathan’s fingers relax and the silver flask begins to slip from his hands. Without thinking, Nadia reaches over swiftly and grabs it before it hits the ground. She cradles it for a moment, marvelling at her newfound reflexes. 

“Careful,” she says softly. “Don’t want security to see this.”

Nathan’s eyes pop open and he gasps softly.

“The fuck’re you doing here?” He mumbles.

She instinctively screws off the cap and drains the rest of the flask. Whiskey. Cheap; burns like a motherfucker. 

“Apologizing,” she says through a cough.

“Ferwhat?” He mumbles. “Yer Billy Idol reject of a boyfriend?”

“Yeah,” Nadia replies, trying to keep the annoyed edge from seeping into her tone. 

Fuck, he was so obnoxious, but she has to keep up this act if she wants to stop the burning hunger in her gut. The whiskey goes to work fast, making her head a little foggy. She swallows hard and presses the flask into his chest, leaning into him and plastering on her best flirtatious grin. She drags her fingers down the arm of his jacket. Nathan looks down at her, surprised. Nausea builds in the pit of her stomach. 

_I can’t fucking believe I’m doing this._

She swallows the sensation and bites her bottom lip in the exact way that she knows makes him weak.

“I stillove you, y’know,” he blurts out, barely keeping his eyes open.

“I know,” she whispers. “I was thinking I could make it up to you?”

“What about yer boyfriennnnd?” Nathan slurs. She’s not sure if he’s trying to mock David or is just having trouble getting the last word out. Another fake grin spreads across her face.

“What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

Nathan blinks and pauses for a moment. She can see his brain trying to comprehend the situation,like the world’s saddest gears on the world’s saddest bike struggling to turn. He finally shrugs lazily.

“Yeah okay,” he mumbles. 

Nadia takes his hand to lead him behind the bathrooms. He’s so warm; she can feel his heartbeat. The hunger claws at her. She looks back over her shoulder. David watches her intently as he smokes. Even from fifty feet away, his eyes pierce hers. His expression is blank and impossible to read. Her stomach tightens as she and Nathan disappear behind the bathrooms.

Nathan clumsily grabs her and tries to pull her close to try and kiss her. Nadia forces a chuckle and pushes him against the wall. Her blood roars; her heart is beating so fast that she feels like she’s going to pass out. Her breathing is ragged and heavy. She can’t control this for much longer. 

Nathan, despite being plastered, quirks an eyebrow.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I’m fine.”

He grabs her hand and pulls her toward him again, placing sloppy kisses on her neck. 

“Missed you,” he mumbles.

Something in the pit of her stomach snaps as the hunger takes over. Maybe it’s his skin on hers, or the fact that she’s close enough to smell his blood - or maybe it’s the rage that’s been trapped inside of her chest like a rabid dog, waiting for the perfect opportunity to attack. To make him pay. 

Nadia grips the lapels of his jacket, her knuckles white, and slams him against the wall as hard as she can. Before he can fight back, she snarls and closes the gap between them, sinking her knife-like fangs into his neck. Each rush of blood that fills her mouth feels like a wave of relief, and runs in thick rivers down her chin as she slobbers and makes strange, animalistic noises that surprise even her. He tastes like metal and cheap whiskey. She keeps drinking, feeling justified. Whatever humanity is left in her no longer argues with what she’s becoming.

A deep, satisfied growl escape her throat as Nathan’s body twitches beneath hers. His hand reaches up and weakly grasps a strand of her hair. The sensation is so gentle; so contradictory for the situation, that it causes her to pull back. Nathan’s complexion is grey. His cheekbones are sunken and his eyes are sallow, yet pleading. Pity, guilt, and shame swirl in the pit of her stomach. 

She can’t do this. 

The hunger is calm for now. She leans forward and Nathan lets out a soft whimper.

“Run,” she whispers.

“Huh?”

“Hit me. As hard as you can. And run.” 

“Nadi—”

“Do it!” She hisses sharply.

A blinding jolt of pain in her ribs knocks her backwards as Nathan's fist connects with her small frame. She grunts and doubles over, giving Nathan time to push her away with his last ounce of strength and bolt down the beach. She frantically scrambles to her feet and feels a gloved hand on the back of her shoulder.

“Where is he?” David spits, his voice thick with rage.

Nadia wrenches his hand from her shoulder and spins on her heel to face him, panting and desperate. She runs her tongue over her newly-sprouted fangs. David swishes past her and examines the spurt of blood that Nathan’s neck left on the wall of the building. He licks his finger.

“He ran that way,” she offers, brushing the sand off of her black jeans.

“You let him get away.”

It's not a question, but more of a trap to see if she'll make a mistake. His voice is gentler now, but a dangerous edge lingers that makes Nadia more than nervous. His penetrating gaze lingers on her, searching her stone cold expression for any sign of weakness. 

“I didn't _let_ him get away. He hit me.”

She makes sure that her voice is soft and small to garner sympathy. It doesn’t stop him from whipping around violently, his eyes golden and full of anger.

“You’re not supposed to let him get away, you're supposed to fucking kill him."

Anger rises in her chest and she draws herself up to her full height.

“Oh, I’m sorry!” Nadia fires back as she lunges toward him. “It’s my _first day_.”

David suppresses an annoyed snarl as he runs a gloved hand through his electric blonde hair. His expression softens somewhat and he points behind him.

“That way?”

She nods. David whistles sharply and, like magic, the rest of the boys appear behind him, their forms slightly obscured by shadows. A microscopic smile flickers across David’s lips and he looks over his shoulder at Marko.

“We’re going hunting.”

Paul sniffs at the cool, salty air while Nadia watches, trying not to look nervous. The boys hop onto their bikes. Nadia steps forward to get on the back of David’s, but he puts his hand out and pushes her backward slightly.

“Not you. You wait here.”

“David, I—”

“That’s an order,” he commands. “Don’t move. We’ll talk when I get back.”

Their engines rev and they fly off into the darkness, whooping and hollering after their prey. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the massive delay. I've just finished my exams for the summer and I already have to start gearing up for the fall semester. Hoping to squeeze in a couple more chapters before school starts up again. Thanks again to everyone who has been reading and leaving kudos and comments. It means the world!


	8. Chapter 8

David frowns against the cool breeze smacking him in the face. How could she be so stupid? Paul and Marko ride up and flank him on either side while Dwayne stays in the back. David scans the beach as he shifts gears. He sees silhouettes dancing around small bonfires close to the water and couples kissing, enjoying the warmth and the moonlight. Finally, a slow, staggering silhouette to his right catches his eye and he whistles sharply at the others. 

Marko catches his eye and grins before making a hard right turn to catch up to their prey. David laughs and follows closely behind, savoring the sound of the waves crashing underneath the ecstatic yelps of his brothers.

***

Nadia huffs angrily and storms over to the bathroom. She kicks the wall of the small shack furiously before plunking down on the sand, defeated, and pouting like a small child. She can still hear the faint rumble of their bikes running down the beach. Nathan’s toast. Guilt creeps up into her chest like a storm and there’s nothing she can do to stop it. 

She checks her watch to distract herself. 11:43p.m. Reilly is going to be at the ferris wheel soon. There’s no way Nadia can face her looking like a literal fucking monster. 

“Stay here,” she grumbles angrily, picking up small pieces of shells and rocks and throwing them into the darkness. “Man, _fuck_ you.”

Nadia clamours to her feet and storms into the women’s room, proceeding to kick open each stall door to make sure that she’s alone. She crosses the room and runs the tap, savouring the feeling of the warm water spilling onto her palms. Instinctively, she looks into the mirror and sees only the grimy bathroom wall behind her, covered in graffiti. 

“Right,” she sighs. “No reflection. Cool, that’s really fucking cool.”

She wipes the remaining damp blood from her chin and licks her fingers clean before splashing cold water onto her face and scrubbing her skin to remove as much fo Nathan’s blood as she can. She exhales sharply as the bathroom door slams open. Two drunk Surf Nazis stumble in, laughing and shoving one another. The smell of whiskey and unwashed bodies invades her nostrils and she almost vomits. The raven-haired Surf Nazi with the worst DIY mohawk she’s ever seen catches her eye and lets out a long, low whistle. Every muscle in her body tenses.

“Look what we got here, fellas!”

He bites his lip and his eyes darken. Nadia swallows hard. She should have just waited outside, at least she’d have the opportunity to run.

_Where’s David when I need him?_

“Fuck off,” she spits.

“Oh! She’s got attitude!” The second one exclaims, gleeful. 

He’s shorter with mousy blonde hair. He’s somehow more dishevelled and greasier than his slimy friend. He licks his lips and looks Nadia up and down. She suppresses a snarl.

“I _love_ a fighter,” he drawls.

They begin to close in on her; Nadia feels it, the hunger - or thirst - or whatever the fuck this thing is called. It creeps up her spine and begins to consume her. She feels her fangs descend and grips the countertop so tightly that she hears the cheap wood snap. The men glance over to her hand, giving her enough time to sprint across the bathroom and leap onto the black-haired one. Her teeth sink into his jugular. Blood spurts across the stained black and white linoleum wall. She snarls and begins to tear at his flesh. The other one makes a break for the door, but Nadia leaps onto him at the last second.

It all happens so fast; she barely remembers ripping them to pieces. Once it’s quiet and their bodies have stopped twitching and writhing painfully beneath her, she stands, covered in blood, and stumbles backward. She stares blankly at the now blood-stained entrance way before lurching to the stalls to collapse onto the floor. She pulls her knees up to her chest and surveys the bright red liquid dripping from her hands and arms. Nadia licks her fingers and hears the bathroom door rattle. She snarls in response.

“FUCK OFF!” She barks. 

“Nadia,” David’s low, rumbling voice calls out from behind the bathroom door.

_Thank fuck._

“I’m here,” she calls out, relieved.

He pushes the door open but it stops halfway, blocked by the boot of the black-haired Surf Nazi. David slides into the bathroom and looks around with wide eyes and raised eyebrows. A soft chuckle escapes his lips. Nadia glowers at him from the floor.

“This is funny to you?”

David shrugs and uses his foot to shift one of the bodies so that it blocks the door from any potential intrusions. He gazes at her from across the room, lustful and dangerous. He grins. 

“A little, yeah.”

He saunters over and plunks down next to her. She can feel his eyes on her, willing her to look at him. She keeps her gaze firmly fixed on her knees. He sighs.

“I have to say, I’m impressed.”

“I can’t stop it,” she whispers. “It comes and goes whenever it wants. All I want to do is tear everything to fucking pieces.”

She sees him nod out of the corner of her eye. Anger rises her chest. Like it would kill him to have a touch more sympathy - no pun intended. 

“You made up for letting…— what’s his name?”

“You know his name,” she seethes.

He snickers.

“Yeah, I do. You made up for letting Nathan go.”

She groans, exasperated.

“Are we really doing this right now?” 

She turns to face his icy blue eyes. They glitter mischievously as his lips spread into a large grin. He’s always fucking smiling. For a moment, she hates him. 

“Yep,” he replies, popping the ‘p’ on the last syllable. 

Her eyes flit toward the ceiling as her lip threatens to curl into an aggressive sneer.

“I told you. I didn’t let him—”

David taps his index finger against his temple.

“You can’t lie to me. We’re bonded.”

His tone is soft and calm. She can’t hide her incredulous look as she finally meets his gaze. His eyes are intense, yet soft at the same time - almost reassuring. For some reason, it doesn’t make the pit in her stomach disappear. 

“What the fuck does that mean?” She asks. 

“It means we’re connected. Physically, mentally, emotionally…other things too.”

His fingers snake up her thigh; she rolls her eyes and places his hand back in his lap.

“So you’re telling me you can read my mind.”

“Not exactly. Just snippets of emotions, thoughts, feelings…”

“Does this go both ways?”

“Eventually. You’ll learn.”

David pulls a blood-spattered silver flask from the inside pocket of his jacket and fiddles with the cap. She tries not to gasp as the image of Nathan’s pallid, gray skin and sunken, pleading eyes comes flooding back to her.

“Where is he?”

“We took care of it,” he replies curtly. He unscrews the cap and sniffs at it. “You shouldn’t have done what you did.”

“And what’s that?”

“Show mercy.”

David stares at her, his eyes burning with anger. They flash amber for a moment. Nadia’s eyes flick back to her knees. She bites her lip.

“You risked exposing us,” he says darkly.

“Well, I guess I just didn’t have it in me to rip his throat out,” she spits.

David chuckles and gestures to the corpses by the bathroom door. Nadia wonders how often his temper ebbs and flows like this. 

“You’ve got somethin’ in you, princess,” he purrs. “I just wish I was here to see it.”

She groans.

“You really _do_ get off on this, don’t you?”

David wraps his arm around her shoulder, leans in, and gently bites her earlobe.

“I love a woman who can tear a man to pieces.”

She smacks him in the ribs. He doesn’t even flinch. 

“You’ve been a vampire for too long,” she mumbles.

“Mmm.”

Nadia looks at her watch and groans. She hears his jacket rustle and the grind of a lighter.

“What?” David asks.

“I’m supposed to be meeting Reilly by the ferris wheel ten minutes ago.”

David’s eyes light up and his face breaks into a wide smile. 

“I love the ferris wheel.”

She shoots him an incredulous look.

“You’re not serious.”

He shrugs and exhales a large cloud of smoke through his nose.

“It sounds fun.” He runs his fingers through her hair and laps at the blood on her neck. “You look like you could use a little fun.”

She shivers and bites back a moan as he presses his lips against her neck and nips gently at her skin. 

“David, I can’t—”

“Or you could sit on the floor of this bathroom for the rest of the night and sulk. That’s fine too.”

She scoffs.

“Come on. I’ll buy you a present.”

She arches an eyebrow.

“You will?”

“No,” he quips. “But I’ll think about it.”

“Fuck you,” she laughs and punches him in the arm.

David leaps to his feet and reaches for her hand.

“Come on.”

“What’re we gonna do about these guys?”

“Nothing,” he says casually. 

“Nothing?”

He crouches down and puts his hands on her knees. His eyes sparkle. She’s not sure why, but it’s the happiest she’s ever seen him - aside from when they fucked. 

“You’re overthinking this. Clean yourself up and meet me outside.”

***

They stroll down the boardwalk, their fingers intertwined. Nadia keeps checking her jacket and jeans for any signs of her most recent massacre. She tugs and pulls at the denim, trying to get a better look at the blood that’s now soaked into it. Reilly’s going to notice - she’s going to smell it. There’s no way she won’t, the woman notices everything.  She hears David chuckle as he pulls her through the crowds.

“You’re wearing black, nobody can see it.”

“Ugh.”

“You’ve gotta chill out, sweetheart.”

She glances down at their intertwined fingers and bites back a smile. David looks relaxed. He smokes as his eyes flit around the boardwalk. She has no idea what he’s looking for, or what’s going on in his head. She wonders if she would have ever crossed his path had she not left that stupid fucking party. Would he have just picked someone else to climb onto the back of his bike that night? She wonders why he picked her, and how many others there have been.

If Reilly heard all of this shit she was thinking, she’d punch her in the face. 

“There they are,” he says, interrupting her spiralling train of thought. 

He drops the butt of his cigarette on the ground and crushes it beneath his boot. Nadia looks up, Reilly and Mick are leaning against the entrance to the ferris wheel laughing loudly and shoving each other. Reilly catches her eye and lets out a joyful shriek.

“You’re late!” She shouts, lighting a cigarette.

“We got held up,” Nadia says as David unclasps his hand from hers to snake his arm around her waist and pull her close. 

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees David flash Reilly a wry grin. Reilly narrows her eyes at both of them and tries not to laugh.

“Lovely,” she mumbles. “Uh, this is Mick. Mick, this is my best friend, Nadia, and her…”

“Boyfriend,” David finishes. Nadia’s eyes go wide and she stares at him. David’s gaze remains fixed on Reilly, clearly determined to make her crack. She merely raises her eyebrows and shakes her head.

“That’s quick.”

_Fuck you!_ Nadia mouths. Reilly plasters on the biggest fake smile she can muster. Mick waves.

“Nice to meet you.”

“Well,” Reilly says, gesturing to the ferris wheel. “Shall we?”

As Nadia moves to pass Reilly to get in line for the ferris wheel, she feels her best friend pull on the back of her jacket. 

“Boyfriend?” Reilly hisses. “Is he fucking serious?”

Nadia shrugs.

“Are _you_ fucking serious?”

“Why don’t you have this conversation with David?” Nadia bites. 

“No, he looks like he could tear my head off.”

_She’s right about that_. 

“Look, Nadia. I’m your best friend.” She lowers her voice to just above a whisper. Nadia glances over at David. His head is cocked slightly to the side, listening. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt again.”

Nadia sighs and reaches over to squeeze Reilly’s hand as a sign of reassurance. 

“I’m fine. Seriously.”

“I—”

“Let’s just have fun tonight, okay?”

Nadia turns away from Reilly and scoots up to be closer to David, grabbing at his coat to get his attention. He smiles over his shoulder and lets her link arms with him. 

“What was that?” He asks. 

“I think you know exactly what that was.” Nadia watches a handful of people get off of the ferris wheel. The line moves forward and the ride attendant gestures for them to get on. David grabs her hand and they slide into the seat.

“She doesn’t like you.”

“Shame,” he mutters as the attendant closes the cage down on them.

“Just be nice, okay?”

“I’m being nice,” he says, wrapping his arm around her shoulder as the ferris wheel begins to take off.

“Did you mean what you said back there?”

He smirks. Nadia can’t look at him. She feels so utterly juvenile asking the question. 

“It’s the easiest way to explain it to humans.”

“But is that how you _feel_ about—”

David grabs her face with both hands and kisses her feverishly. Nadia gasps and sinks into his touch, her fingers grasping at the lapels of his jacket and pulling his body as close to hers as she can. He breaks the kiss and drags his thumb across her bottom lip. She shivers.

“You’re mine,” he says softly. 

Nadia accepts his answer. Maybe it’s the only way he knows how to show affection, or maybe he just says the same shit to everyone. He pulls her close and she buries her face in his jacket. Shebrushes her face against the rough stubble on his chin and feels him smile. For a moment, everything stops.


	9. Chapter 9

They end the night in the beer garden. Reilly is in line at the bar with Mick’s cherry red sweatshirt hanging off of her, her spindly legs stick out like toothpicks. Mick is at the bar talking to one of his co-workers. Nadia glances around and watches drunk couples laughing, falling over each other and exchanging sloppy kisses. Normally, she would roll her eyes, but tonight she finds it quite sweet. She suspects it has a lot to do with David’s behavior. He’s been uncharacteristically sweet since the ferris wheel. While Reilly and Mick were busy flirting in the lineups for the rides, David snuck kisses and gentle nibbles at Nadia’s neck and earlobes and whispered things in her ear that made her stomach do backflips. 

Nathan and the Surf Nazis feel like a lifetime ago.

David watches her as she gazes at a a couple not much older than them giggling and pressing their noses together at a table in the far back corner. She can always feel those piercing blue eyes on her - it’s not like he ever bothers to hide his intensity. When Nadia turns her head to glance at him, he looks away and drums his fingers on the picnic table. 

“What’s going on with you?” She asks.

He grins and shrugs.

“It’s getting late.” 

“You got a curfew?” She asks flirtatiously. She slides over and runs her hands through his soft blonde hair. 

“Yeah, the sun.” His voice drips with sarcasm. 

“Right. I forgot.” She glances at her watch. “We’re fine, it’s just after 3:00.”

“The boys are waiting for us back at the hotel.”

She almost corrects him; makes fun of him for calling that derelict cave a hotel - but his eyes seem to light up at the mention of his brothers and the home that they share. Instead, she nods and reaches over to run her fingers through his hair. Reilly’s cherry red sweater catchers her eye. Nadia watches with disbelief as she carries over a tray of shots with a big, stupid grin on her face.

“You’re not serious.”

“Mick gets them for free.” Reilly shrugs. “Employee perks.”

She chuckles at Reilly, whose expression has turned somewhat cold and stony. She feels distance between them. It’s been happening for a while, ever since Nadia got her acceptance letter from NYU back in January. Tonight, she feels a sense of suspicion clouding her best friend’s judgement - like Reilly doesn’t really want to spend quality time together, but wants to monitor things instead. The whole night, Nadia has felt Reilly’s eyes on her and David (mostly David), watching and waiting for some kind of slip up. She probably has no idea what she’s looking for. Nadia supposes it makes sense - in Reilly’s eyes, she’s been acting super fucking weird…but it’s not like she could ever tell Reilly the truth. She’d either laugh or call the psych ward. 

David reaches over, plucks a shot glass from the tray, and tosses it back. 

“David!” Reilly screeches. “We were going to cheers! It was going to be a whole thing!”

He bites back a snicker.

“Sometimes I just can’t control myself.”

Reilly plunks down, picks up a shot glass and locks eyes with David, who mirrors her movements and stares at her with his best shit-eating grin.

“To new friends,” she says, her voice coated in ice. David quirks an eyebrow.

“Cheers.”

They clink shot glasses and down their drinks. As Mick saunters up to the picnic table, Nadia quickly throws back two shots. The rest of their time in the beer garden becomes an alcohol-induced blur until the lights shut off and they stumble out onto the boardwalk. People are slowly beginning to walk to their cars, not caring that security guards and staff are glaring at them and willing them to leave faster. In this town, people are all about taking their sweet time to get anywhere. 

Nadia trails behind David, who is walking surprisingly well after downing 8…10 shots? Her eyes are bleary and her belly sloshes, full of tequila. Or was it rum? It doesn’t really matter. Who knew that vampires could get drunk.

“Nadia!” A voice behind her whispers - actually, it’s more like the loudest whisper she’s ever heard. Reilly is dangling off of Mick’s arm and trying to pull herself away, still draped in his cherry red sweatshirt. “C’mere — Mick, give us a second.”

“Are you sure?” Mick asks, chuckling. “You can barely walk.”

David glances back over his shoulder and Reilly’s arm shoots out in front of her to point at him dramatically.

“NO LISTENING, YOU! Go show Mick your bike ‘ersomethin’.”

Mick’s eyes glitter and pop open.

“You got a bike?”

“Yeah,” David chuckles. “C’mon.”

Nadia shoots him an icy glare. The second she makes eye contact, she feels something strange in the center of her chest - a door opening. She feels instantly connected to David, but in an entirely different way than usual. She was used to the magnetic pull he possessed; his ability to make her knees weak and cloud her judgement. That was lust, that was different. 

_“Don’t you dare hurt him.”_

David smiles at her.

_“Relax, Princess. You’re catching on faster than I thought.”_

Before she can respond, Reilly pulls her away and she watches Mick and David stroll off the boardwalk. Reilly wobbles and uses Nadia to steady herself. Nadia grabs her friend’s shoulders.

“I wanna say somethin’ to you,” Reilly slurs.

“What’s up, babe?”

“Y’know Ilove you.”

“I know.”

Reilly's face twists into a grimace, and her cheeks flush. She sniffles and wipes her eyes. Nadia swallows the growing lump in her throat.

“Gonna miss you when you go," Reilly whispers.

“I know.”

Reilly squints and she takes a deep breath.

“CanIaaaaaassssk you about David?”

Nadia laughs and envelops her best friend in a tight hug.

“Maybe when you’re more sober, sweetheart. We’ve gotta be getting back and you’ve got to go to bed.”

“Mmmmmmkaaaayyyy.” 

“Nadia!” David calls from his bike. “Let’s go!”

***

Nadia tightens her grip around David’s body as his bike cuts through the chill ocean air, chasing the remaining darkness as the sun begins to rise. The anxiety of being caught out in the open is enough to sober both of them up quickly. She feels David’s muscles tense and twitch in a way she’s never experienced before. If he had a heartbeat, she’s sure it would feel like a jackhammer, beating an anxious tattoo against his ribcage.

They pass dying bonfires and passed out teenagers on their way back to the hotel, whooping and laughing as they speed down the beach toward Hudson’s Bluff. She hears the fear lingering in the back of his throat and gives him a reassuring squeeze. They’ll make it - they have to. 

David comes to the same screeching halt that he did the first night he took her out on his Triumph. This time, Nadia doesn’t feel the same urge to pass out from sheer terror. She hops off the bike and stares down at the waves as they thrash violently against the rocks. The wind whips her hair around her face, and she pushes it away to get a better look at the waves. The burgeoning sunlight makes them glitter gold and white. 

“Come on!” He barks.

The sun is coming up fast. She wonders how long it’s been since David has felt the sun on his skin - although, the sweaty Santa Carla summers wouldn’t do much for his aesthetic. Nadia takes his hand and feels her skin prickle as they leap down the steep rocks. David pulls her, hard, into the cave’s entrance and down the steps to the “lobby” of the hotel. There, she sees Marko barely conscious as he’s lying on a ratty old couch that’s probably been here since this hotel sunk into the ground. Dwayne is on a bed nearby, and Paul is downing the last of a beer in an old, black wheelchair - David’s wheelchair. 

“Boys,” David chimes, pulling them both down the steps.

“Cutting it close,” Paul mumbles. 

David pulls Nadia close and places a soft peck on her cheek. His fingers trace a delicate line up and down her back and eventually slip into the waistband of her jeans. Nadia clears her throat and tries to keep a straight face. If it were possible, she would be crimson right now. 

Paul stands up and tosses his empty beer can over his shoulder.

“Heard about those Surf Nazis, girl. Welcome to the family.”

Nadia’s brow knits together in confusion.

“How did you — oh, your weird telepathy thing.”

“You’ll get used to it.”

David grabs Nadia’s hand and begins to lead her to the back of the cave, to a set of what look like bedroom doors. He glances back over his shoulder at the boys, grinning.

“See you tonight.”

Paul and Marko laugh and howl behind them. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the huge delay! School has been ridiculous. I'm in the process of writing a huge chapter with some more character development for Nadia that I'll hopefully be putting up next week.


	10. Chapter 10

David leads her to the back of the cave and up a small set of stone steps to a set of doors. He kicks open the first one with his foot and gestures for Nadia to go inside. Behind her, she hears the flick of his zippo and all of the candles in the room ignite. She gasps and turns to him, her eyes wide with childlike curiosity. 

“How did you do that?” 

“Secret.”

“Like a vampire secret that I’ll learn?”

He brushes her hair away from her face and kisses her softly.

“ _My_ secret.”

“Hmph.”

There’s a gigantic four post bed draped in crimson satin blankets. Beside her is a table with an old record player sitting on it; a milk crate full of old records rests on the floor collecting dust. The room itself looks relatively untouched, which leads her to believe that David doesn’t actually sleep here - rather, he comes here when he needs to be alone… or he takes girls here, away from the prying eyes of his brothers. The thought sends a pang of jealousy through her chest for a moment, but she swallows it, remembering the way he kissed her on the ferris wheel. 

“Wow,” she whispers and gestures toward the milk crate. “Can I look through these?”

David throws himself onto the bed, kicking off his boots and resting his hands behind his head. 

“Knock yourself out, babydoll.”

She thumbs through the stack. Some of them are old, from musicians she’s never heard of. The sleeves are faded and the white paper has turned a soft cream color. Some of the record covers are written in other languages. She looks over her shoulder at him, watching her. 

“Where did you get these? The ones in Russian and shit.”

“Oh, you know. Just things I’ve collected over the years.”

She quirks an eyebrow.

“How old are you, exactly?”

“Twenty-one.”

He smirks. She narrows her eyes.

“Liar.”

His grin widens.

“Do you speak Russian?” She asks nonchalantly.

“Da.”

“Seriously?!”

He laughs, it’s the most lighthearted laugh she’s heard since she met him. 

“No,” he says. “I just like the sound of the music.”

“What kind of music is it, exactly?”

“Old stuff,” he replies. “Like chamber music.”

“Ohhhhh, like something Dracula would listen to.” She saunters toward him and kicks his foot gently. “Are you Dracula? Is that what you’re telling me?”

“Fuck off,” he laughs. He tries to kick her back, but she jumps away and walks back to the record stack. “I just like the sound of it.”

“Because it reminds you of home, right?” She teases. “Because you’re Dracula?”

“Dracula’s from Transylvania.”

“Yeah, that’s in Russia.”

“You’re not too good at geography, are you?” He asks.

“Okay, Not Dracula, where were you _actually_ born?”

“Colorado.”

“Huh. I pegged you for a California boy.”

She turns continues to thumb through his collection. Other than the old stuff that she can’t read, it’s pretty solid. A lot of punk, which she expected given his haircut and general demeanor; he has some new wave stuff that’s still in plastic, Motley Crue, The Velvet Underground, some blues - no disco, thank fuck. It’s all her dad plays at home. The man has a deeply unhealthy obsession with ABBA. Nadia keeps flipping and stops suddenly. Her eyes widen and she excitedly yanks the record out and practically shoves it in David’s face.

“Siouxsie and the Banshees?!”

He lights a cigarette and smiles as Nadia unsheathes the record and places it delicately onto the turntable. The needle drops and music begins to pour into the room - whining guitars, drums, and Siouxsie’s hypnotic voice. Nadia climbs onto the bed, plucking David’s cigarette from his fingers. She takes a long pull.

“I have to pick some clothes up from my parent’s place tonight,” she says softly.

“Hmm.”

She turns to look at David, who can barely keep his eyes open.

“Is that vampire for, ‘Sure, Nadia! What a great idea’?”

“Hmm.”

She stubs the cigarette out, rests her head on his chest, and lets the music fade out as her eyes close.

***

David’s Triumph rumbles to a stop in front of her darkened house. The lamp on her nightstand illuminates her bedroom. She’s grateful her parents aren’t home so her dad can’t endlessly bitch about her racking up their electrical bill, even though he falls asleep with the T.V. on all the fucking time. 

They climb off the bike and enter through the front door. Mail is scattered all over the entrance. Nadia sighs.

“Shit. I was supposed to go through this.”

“Why?”

“Because junk mail infuriates my dad.”

“Seems like a weird thing to get pissed off about,” David mumbles.

“My dad’s a weird guy,” Nadia replies as she sorts through the necessary bills and letters and places them in a neat pile on the table near the door.

David stands in the entrance hall, plucking family pictures off of the wall and examining them. The house is full of photos of family trips to The Grand Canyon, Disneyland, camping in Arizona, and swimming in Greece. He smiles.

“Who’s this?” He asks, holding up a photo of a much younger Nadia standing in front of a crystal blue lake. She’s clad in a bright pink bathing suit, her dark hair sticking to her skinny frame. Her spindly arms are wrapped tightly around a taller girl with golden blonde hair that extends past her elbows dressed in a white t-shirt and faded cutoff denim shorts. They’re both laughing. The memory of joyful screaming, water splashing, and the click of the shutter on her dad’s old camera comes flooding back.

“That’s my older sister, Dominique.”

“She move out?”

“No. She died about a year after that picture was taken,” Nadia replies. “Cancer.”

David gently places the photo back on the wall.

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay. To tell you the truth, it was a relief when she finally died. She was in a lot of pain. We used to share a bedroom. I’d stay up all night, some nights, making sure she was still breathing.”

“How old were you?”

“Ten, I think? She was only two years older than me.”

“Hmm.”

Her sister’s illness entered their home like an intruder, and quickly made itself the domineering force in their lives. Everything revolved around getting Dominique to and from the hospital for treatment. Every moment was spent making sure that she was comfortable and happy as she slowly slipped away from them, despite her doctors’ best efforts.

All of their lives got stuck on autopilot.

“Come on,” she says softly, “I gotta get my stuff.” 

Nadia is eager to escape the memory of cradling her sister’s emaciated frame in her arms as she took her last rattling breaths. The memory of screaming for her parents until her lungs burned; of hot tears staining her face for days. The memory of her mother leaning over the kitchen counter at Dominque’s wake, spilling great heaving sobs into the sink as she tried to make more punch for the guests.

Friends and neighbours stopped by the house with endless casseroles, and flowers, and cards, consoling her parents in tight hugs. Telling them, “You’ll move on when you’re ready” - as though Dominique was their only child. Nadia resented it. She became entirely invisible the moment her sister died. She loved Dominique too. She was simply expected to adjust to life without the one person in the world who knew all of her secrets. 

Dominique’s clothes are all in boxes now; her toys and trinkets donated to kids who loved them just as much as she did. All that’s left of her now is pictures and stories, but nobody mentions them - a willful act of erasure, as far as she’s concerned. She still writes letters to Dominique sometimes as a way to keep their connection. 

It’s hard to say her name without conjuring tearful expressions and sniffles from her parents. No matter how hard they try to get rid of her, she will always haunt this place. 

As they stalk up the staircase, she feels David’s hand on her back, a small gesture of comfort. Nadia takes his hand and pushes open her bedroom door. As David plunks down onto the bed, she grabs a black duffel bag from the closet and begins to haphazardly stuff clothes into it, not really caring what she leaves behind. She pretty much just wears the same thing every day.

“Most people fold things, you know,” David teases.

“Big talk from a guy who wears the same thing every day.”

Just as he’s about to retort, Nadia hears the deadbolt on the front door click, followed by the sound of her parent’s laughter. Her stomach knots.

“Fuck! They’re not supposed to be home until next week!”

“Nadia?” Her mother calls.

“Fuck!” Nadia hisses softly. “Yeah, mom! I’m up here!”

She looks at David.

“You have to hide.”

“What?”

“Just…fly out the window or something!”

A sly grin creeps across his face.

“Nope.”

“David! Please, it’s just until—”

“Sorry to surprise you, sweetheart,” Nadia’s mother’s voice says from outside the door. The handle turns and it begins to push open. Between trying to usher David toward the window and drowning in abject panic, she doesn’t have time to stop her mother from coming in. 

“We were going to call, but your father refuses to pay for long dista— Oh! Hello.”

David has already plastered on his most charming schoolboy smile and is sitting rather angelically on the side of Nadia’s bed, hands clasped in his lap. Nadia’s head drops.

“Hello, Mrs…”

“Jensen.” Nadia finishes as her mother proceeds to pick her jaw up off of the floor. 

“Please,” her mother half-chuckles, looking David up and down. Nadia already knows her mother doesn’t approve of the haircut, the earring choice, or his clothes. Her parents are more of a khaki pants, boat shoes, and polo shirt kind of crowd.

“Call me Marcie.”

“Marcie,” he purrs as he crosses the room to shake her hand warmly. No gloves, thank God. “Pleasure to meet you. I’m David. I’m a friend of Nadia’s.”

Marcie eyes her daughter suspiciously. Nadia keeps her eyes fixed on the carpet, praying that a meteor would just hit the house right now and spare her the embarrassment of this situation. Boys in bedroom were a huge no-no in this house - especially strange vampires disguised as boys.

“Nadia, can I speak with you out in the hall for a minute? Apologies, David. Family stuff.”

“Oh, it’s no trouble, Marcie.”

Metaphorical tail between her legs, Nadia follows her mother out into the hall. She can see David stifling his laughter as she exits. She fights the urge to storm over and smack him hard on the shoulder. Her mother’s patient smile turns to a snarl and her eyes narrow as the door shuts behind them.

“What the hell are you thinking?!” She hisses. “If your father catches him, you’re dead!”

_If only you knew, mom._

“And what the hell are you doing packing a bag?! Are you taking off with him?!”

“Just for the night—”

“You should be packing for New York, not hanging out with some boy! Is that his motorcycle outside? Do you know how dangerous those things are?!”

“Mom, just chill out for a second. David is a poetry major—”

“I will not ‘chill out’! He’s older than you?! By how much?!”

“MOM! Will you _let_ me finish a sentence, please? First of all, I’m eighteen years old. Second, we met at an art show while you and dad were in Paris. He’s really nice, and he’s really cool, and I _really,_ really like him.”

She stares at her mother, pleading, wishing she was half as persuasive as David was. She guesses it’s a tactic she’ll learn to perfect over time. David almost had her mother wrapped around his finger with a simple introduction. Marcie sighs and rubs her exhausted eyes. She tries not to lie to her parents 70% of the time.

“I’m too tired to fight with you, Nadia,” she huffs. “But both of you have to stay for dinner. I want to get to know this boy.”

“It’s 8:30.”

“We haven’t eaten yet, and by the looks of it, neither have you.” She presses the back of her hand to Nadia’s forehead. “Are you okay, sweetheart? You look sick—”

She gasps, her eyes wide and panicked.

“Are you kids getting high in there?!”

Nadia swats her mother’s hand away from her face.

“No, mom! I’m all right. I’m just tired.”

“Not enough sleep, and too much attention being paid to that boy, is my guess,” Marcie quips.

“Mom—”

She puts her hands up to silence Nadia.

“Be downstairs in an hour. It’s going to take some time to explain things to your father.”

Nadia pulls her mother in for a hug. Marcie lets out a surprised squeak, but quickly eases into her daughter’s newfound affection.

“I love you, sweetheart.”

“I love you too.”

“One hour,” Marcie warns, as she turns to walk down the stairs.

“Got it.”

“And change your clothes,” she says. “You smell like death.”

Nadia lets out a heavy sigh and opens the bedroom door. David is lounging on her bed with his boots placed neatly on the floor. He’s grinning as he clicks his tongue at her in mock disapproval. 

“Poetry major? Art show? New York?” 

“I had to think fast.”

He’s silent, just staring at her.

“The New York thing is true,” she says softly. “I’m supposed to start at NYU next month.”

“Oh yeah?” David’s expression remains entirely neutral as he lights a cigarette.

“Yeah, I was supposed to major in Psychology.”

“You don’t sound very excited.”

“Well, it’s not like college is a viable career path now.”

Silence. David puffs on his cigarette.

“Your last name is Jensen?”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“Nothing.”

Nadia shrugs off her jacket and pulls her shirt up over her head, whipping it across the room with one hand. She looks down at the dried blood that still stains her chest. David eyes her hungrily as she kicks off her boots, unbuttons her jeans, and steps out of them. He says nothing, content to watch her push her hair out of her face and comb it back with her fingers. He bites his lip.

“We have to have dinner with my parents in an hour,” she says. “You hungry?”

“Not in the way you might think,” he purrs, taking an extra long pull on his cigarette.

She rolls her eyes but can’t contain a sly smile.

“I’m going to take a shower.”

The bed creaks; she hears his coat hit the floor and feels him following her as she pads to the bathroom. The door clicks softly behind them. David turns the lock and leans up against the door, icy blue eyes slowly scanning every inch of her body. Nadia hops up onto the bathroom counter and twirls a strand of hair around her fingers while chewing on her bottom lip. Her feet dangle delicately above the rose-colored bath mat.

“We have to be quiet,” she says softly.

He takes a step toward her. Her stomach does a backflip.

“Of course.”

“If anyone hears us…”

David reaches out and gently slides her bra strap down her shoulder with one hand.

“They won’t,” he whispers. “Take this off.”

“You first.”

He yanks his t-shirt up over his head and tosses it blindly behind him. She laughs.

“And the rest of it.”

He unbuckles his belt and unzips his pants, allowing his erection to spring free. Nadia licks her lips and reaches for him as he closes the gap between them. Lips crash. She strokes him slowly, teasing. David snarls against her mouth and breaks the kiss. Nadia smiles, relishing the way his head falls back and his lips part to release a heavy sigh. His hands find her waist, and he grabs on to steady himself. Nadia groans softly, her own arousal coiling within her. She loves watching him come undone like this, his breathing growing ragged as she quickens her strokes. His fingernails dig into her waist and he sucks in a deep breath. After a few seconds, his head snaps up, eyes golden and burning into hers.

“Stop,” he barks. “Take off your clothes and start the shower.”

Nadia refuses to question him in his current state. She slides off the bathroom counter, abandons her bra and panties, and runs the water until steam unfurls around them. David climbs in after her and his hands immediately slide up her hips, her stomach, and her breasts. He drags his lips up her shoulder toward her neck. Nadia can feel his cock pressing into her backside. He grinds his hips against her and a soft growl escapes his throat. She arches her spine and lets her head fall back. His teeth sink into her skin. A soft line of blood trickles down her right breast as David’s tongue laps at the wound. His fingers snake down between her legs and begin rubbing small circles around her clit. Nadia gasps, and her voice threatens to betray her by letting out a strangled, muted cry. David’s right hand moves swiftly to grip her long dark hair and he yanks her head backward, tutting softly.

“ _We_ have to be quiet… remember?”

“Y— yes,” she chokes out.

He pulls her hair a little harder. She feels two fingers slide into her heat, and instinctively tilts her pelvis toward his hand. Nadia bites the inside of her mouth so hard that it fills with blood.

“Good girl,” he purrs.

He continues to tease her until she begins to ache, letting out soft, pleading moans while her hips grind into his hand. After a few minutes, he pulls her hips back in line with his, and she feels him slide into her. Nadia hisses and presses her palms against the shower wall to brace herself. He thrusts slowly and lets out a low growl as his hands snake up and down her body. Nadia can barely see her own hands through the steam.

“Fuck,” she whispers.

He chuckles softly and his fingers find her clit again - quicker circles this time, matching the growing speed of his thrusts. She clenches her jaw, her orgasm building as he speeds up.

“David…”

Another growl. His thrusts grow harder, more erratic. She can hear his breath, quick and hitching in his chest. He grunts softly and lets his fingernails sink into her skin. Nadia cranes her neck to try and catch a glimpse of his face - another chance to watch his perfectly composed, cool demeanor crack and fall apart in front of her. Her legs begin to shake, and threaten to collapse beneath her. She wants to scream, but settles for clawing at the linoleum just to get some kind of release. His hands are vice grips on both of her hips now, controlling the rhythm. Faster. Harder. 

Her own orgasm begins to crest and her muscles twitch as she lets it rip through her. Her legs fight tohold her up. She hears David snarl and groan as he comes, his rhythm slow, savoring the brief moment of bliss. Nadia gasps, as though she’s just learned how to breathe for the first time, and he slides out of her. He spins her around to look at him, his eyelids heavy. Nadia kisses him and laughs. He reaches past her and turns the shower off. They towel off in silence and share small, flirtatious glances.

"You ready to meet the Jensens?" Nadia asks.

"It's not really my thing," David says quietly as he climbs back into his pants. "Not many girls stick around long enough to get to that stage."

"How many is 'not many'?"

David kisses the top of her head.

"Just one."


	11. Chapter 11

The dining room is rustic and barely used save for dinner once a week. Tucked in the far corner is a small china hutch filled with expensive dishes that nobody has touched in at least ten years. Yet, her mother insists on dusting it every day. The walls are a soft cream colour, decorated with more family photos with a special corner dedicated to pictures of Dominique. Her parents do their very best to avoid looking in that direction. 

They sit in front of white and blue bone china plates and crystal water glasses. Napkins are gently folded into small triangles, sitting just beside their glasses. David lifts up the glass and holds it up to the light before gently putting it back in its place and looking around, bemused. Nadia feels like she’s awaiting execution. She notices the cigarette tucked neatly behind his ear and quickly grabs it. He lets out a soft hiss.

“Hey!”

She shoves the cigarette in his face.

“If my mom sees this, she’s going to freak out,” Nadia hisses. “Put it in your pocket or get rid of it.”

“Oooh,” David coos. “Boss me around like that again.”

Her eyes narrow. She can feel her blood beginning to boil. The knot in her stomach tightens. She refuses to give in to his stupid fucking games right now.

“I’m so serious, David. Don’t make me tell you twice.”

His expression turns to one of mock desperation as he exhales loudly and slides a hand up her leg.

“Now you’re just turning me on.”

“David!” She squawks. 

She slaps his hand away. Her eyes bore into his, furious and pleading at the same time. He chuckles and plucks the cigarette from her fingers, stuffing it into the pocket of his t-shirt.

“You’re such a fucking dick,” she whispers.

“Thank you.” His tone shifts. "Is this a normal thing? Family dinners?”

“My mom’s idea to keep me out of trouble. The woman saw one episode of Donahue and decided she had a PhD in child psychology.”

David grins. He’s abandoned his jacket and is dressed only in his faded black t-shirt and black jeans. His arms are firm beneath his pale skin. She has a hard time not looking at them, remembering them wrapped around her.

And his hands… gripping her hipbones so tightly she felt like he might actually crush them. 

Nadia swallows hard and sucks in a deep, calming breath as David turns to her and winks, knowing exactly what she’s thinking about. The back of his hair is slightly damp from their shower tryst. She prays her mother doesn’t notice. 

Nadia wishes her family dinners came about in a much softer, more organic way - as a way for her parents to genuinely get to know her. The truth was, Marcie became convinced that instilling an hour of torturous questions about how school was, who was dating who, a detailed breakdown of every single class, and listening to truly dull high school gossip would keep her precious baby girl from smoking pot and joining a gang.

The poor woman is 0 for 2, and she has no idea.

Nadia’s father enters through the French doors that lead to the living room. He’s shorter than his wife and daughter, dressed in blue jeans, a faded red t-shirt with dark hair and a slowly greying beard. Nadia sucks in a deep breath and prepares for the worst. She loves her father, but there are a lot of rules. He's former military, so everything is perfectly dusted, always in its place, and beds have to be made the moment they awaken. 

She’s broken his "no boys in bedrooms" rule before and caught the full brunt of his temper - never violent, but his voice could make the earth shake if he really wanted it to.

“Hi sweetheart,” he chirps. 

“Hi dad. How was Paris?”

“Oh, gorgeous. I’ve got a _ton_ of pictures. You know what that means!”

David quirks an eyebrow and glances at her.

_What does that mean?_

_My dad’s super passionate about slideshows._

_Have fun with that._

_Feel me up at the table again and you'll be joining me._

_Seems kinda worth it._

David winks at her again as she tries to quell her growing annoyance. 

“Can’t wait, dad,” she says through clenched teeth. 

She flinches as he approaches David, who continues to look calm and cool, flashing her father an angelic smile. She wonders if he was an altar boy in a past life. 

“You must be David,” her father says cheerfully, sticking out his hand. David grasps it warmly. “I’m Victor.”

“Pleasure to meet you, sir,” David replies. 

Nadia glances from David to her father and back again. Something’s not right. He should be angry. He’s not very good at hiding these kinds of feelings. 

The doorbell rings. Nadia hears her mother let out a surprised yelp and the zip of a purse.

“Marcie tells me you two met at an art show?” Victor asks.

Nadia’s stomach knots. She feels David squeeze her thigh gently underneath the table.

_I’ve got this_.

She exhales softly.

“That’s right,” David says as Marcie bustles into the dining room and places two large pizzas down on the dining room table.

“I wasn’t sure how hungry we were.”

“Starving!” Victor exclaims. “You kids go first.”

David grabs two slices and places them on Nadia’s plate, before taking two pieces for himself.

“What kind of art show was it?”

“It was an open mic kind of thing,” David says, taking a bite of pizza. “Some bands, some poets.”

“Where was it?” Marcie asks, her gaze focused on Nadia.

Nadia resists the urge to roll her eyes.

_Oh my God._

_Chill out, girl._

“Near the Boardwalk,” Nadia says softly.

“Hmm.”

“If there’s another one, we’ll let you know,” David offers, smiling warmly. It doesn’t quite reach his eyes, but her parent’s don’t seem to notice.

Victor laughs.

“No, no, that’s not really our _thing_.”

“Yeah, mom and dad are more of a curated art kind of crowd,” Nadia says slyly. 

“I like the art gallery!” Marcie cuts in.

“Mom, it’s literally just 500 of the same old pictures of Santa Carla and like four water colour paintings by the old people in the senior's center."

Marcie sighs and shakes her head. David tries to repress a laugh.

“These kids just don’t appreciate history,” she says to her husband.  Victor shrugs and finishes his first slice of pizza.

“Did you grow up here, David?” Marcie asks.

“No, ma’am. I was born and raised in Colorado. I came here when I was about fifteen.”

“Beautiful place,” Victor chimes in.

“It is. My parents had a farm there.”

“What happened to it?” Nadia asks.

“Bankruptcy,” he says softly, his eyes fixed on his now grease-stained plate. “We moved out west to start over.”

It’s the most he’s ever talked about himself. Nadia feels the urge to poke, to dig deeper, but she resists and shoves some pizza into her mouth to keep herself quiet. Her parents exchange remorseful looks. David laughs.

“So now I write poems about it that nobody reads.”

Marcie and Victor chuckle. For a moment, Nadia forgets that this is all an elaborate lie that they’ve made up off the cuff. They feel like a normal couple having an awkward dinner with her parents. 

For a moment, she forgets that they’re both monsters capable of ripping out her parent’s throats in less than a minute.

The knot in her stomach returns and the conversation fades into the background as Nadia slips into a deep well of existential dread. She doesn’t notice her father calling her name until David pinches her leg.

“Sorry, dad. What?”

“Do you want some more pizza?”

“Oh!” She laughs. “No. No, I’m alright.”

“Honey, you’ve barely eaten,” Marcie says. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

“I’m fine, mom. Really.”

David shoves the last of his pizza into his mouth and looks at the clock that ticks ominously above the dining room doorway.

“I think we should probably head out to meet the guys at the Boardwalk,” he says to Nadia. 

She nods and glances at her parents.

“Is that okay?”

“Absolutely!” Victor chimes in as he slides his chair out and begins to clean the table. 

Nadia's eyebrows knit together in confusion.

“Mom?”

Marcie flashes her a big smile and drains her glass.

“Of course, sweetheart. You kids have fun.”

Nadia narrows her eyes and decides to take a risk.

“I’m staying at David’s tonight.”

“That’s fine, honey!” Victor says as he and Marcie disappear into the kitchen.

Nadia throws her hands helplessly into the air and looks at David with disbelief.

“Okay, what the fuck?”

David raises his hands in front of him.

“What?”

“What did you do? They’re never like this.”

He laughs.

“I didn’t do anything!”

“You’re a liar. You’re an absolute fucking liar. If those two could put a fucking tracking device on me, they would! If I told them I was staying out all night with someone like…”

He stares at her, unblinking, as a shit-eating grin spreads across his face.

“Someone like…c’mon, sweetheart. Spit it out.”

“Someone like _you_ …they would have me publicly executed.”

“Well,” David offers, taking the unlit cigarette out of his pocket and shoving it between his full lips. “I guess the Jensens have gotten a lot cooler.”

“Daviiiiid!” She whines. “Just tell me what you did.”

“Do you really want to know?” He asks, heading toward the hallway to retrieve his boots and jacket. Nadia’s bag is sitting beside the front door.

“Yes! I really want to know!”

He slips into his jacket and sits on the bottom stair to shove his feet into his boots.

“Humans are stupid and easily manipulated.”

“So… you lied to my parents?”

“It’s more like they saw and heard what they wanted to see and hear. And I might have…influenced them a little bit.”

Nadia’s jaw goes slack.

“How did you do this?”

David stands, leans in and brushes his lips softly against hers as his fingers swim through her long dark hair. She shivers.

“Secret.”


	12. Chapter 12

“I can’t believe you did that,” Nadia muses as they walk out of the house.

“Just trying to make things a little easier for you, doll,” He replies, climbing onto his Triumph. He stares at her for a moment.

“What is it?” She asks.

David reaches up and gently grasps her chin. He turns her head from side to side, his brows knit with confusion.

“David,” she presses. “What is it? Seriously.”

“You need to eat.”

She leans down and kisses him.

“I had pizza.”

He shoots her a disapproving look.

“Nadia.”

There’s a softness in his eyes that she’s never seen before. She feels butterflies in her stomach. She loves the way he stares at her, the way his eyes glitter. She loves the weight of her name on his lips. She loves the shape of his lips; the way his skin feels on hers.

She loves him.

Oh no. Oh, no no no no. 

This is bad. 

The butterflies turn to nausea and her chest tightens.

She swallows hard and hopes he hasn’t felt or heard what she’s thinking.

“Look at you, caring about me,” she teases, trying to keep her voice from doing that thing where it gets high and weird when she’s nervous.

He groans and rolls his eyes. She chuckles, climbs on the back of his bike, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his jacket.

“I know I need to feed,” she says softly. “It’s just gross.”

His deep laugh reverberates through her body.

“Small price to pay to live forever.”

“Says you.”

“You wouldn’t be the first to have to adjust to it,” he says.

“Yeah? How long did it take you?”

“A few years. Max helped me a lot.”

“Who’s Max?”

“We’ll take you to meet him tonight,” David says. “I think it’s time.”

“Sounds ominous.”

David turns and grins. She tries her hardest not to melt into him.

“I met your parents, I think it’s time you meet mine.”

She can’t stop the grin from spreading across her face.

“Big step.”

“Big step,” he echoes.

She kisses his cheek tenderly before they speed off toward the Boardwalk.

***

Paul and Marko are the first to greet them once they pull up. Dwayne is perched on the railing, intently focused on a girl playing whack-a-mole. 

“Heeeyyyyyy!” Paul calls out, grinning like an idiot. “About time you two lovebirds showed up!”

“Aw, Paul, I didn’t realize you missed me so much!” Nadia teases, climbing off of David’s motorcycle and linking her arm with his. 

“Always, babydoll,” Paul replies with a wink.

“Watch it,” David warns, grinning. “Find anyone yet?”

Paul lights a cigarette.

“Dwayne’s working on it."

He motions toward the girl no younger than them playing whack-a-mole. She’s petite, blonde, drunk, and giggling. She looks up every few seconds to make flirtatious eye contact with Dwayne. Nadia’s stomach churns at the thought of watching the boys rip into her jugular.

“She’s just a kid,” Nadia says softly.

David glances at her and shrugs.

“So are we.”

“I can’t do it.”

“Can’t, or won’t?”

Nadia bites her lip. She can hear the girl’s blood roaring. The hunger in the pit of Nadia’s stomach grows; screams at her to give in. Her vision is getting blurry. She swallows hard and turns to David.

“We have to find somebody else.”

“Better do it fast,” David replies.

Paul puffs on his cigarette and lets out a long, low whistle. Dwayne’s head flicks up immediately and he stares at his brothers. Paul shakes his head. Dwayne huffs and hops off of the railing.

“The fuck’s going on?” He calls out, storming toward David. “She’s calling the shots now?”

“Careful,” David barks, closing the gap between them. His jaw is clenched, and his knuckles are white from being clenched so tightly. Nadia’s eyes flick to Paul and Marko, who look on nervously. She locks eyes with Marko.

_Have they ever done this before?_

He shakes his head slowly. Nadia steps in between Dwayne and David, pushing them apart as gently as she can. She looks up at Dwayne, her eyes soft and pleading.

“Dwayne, it’s not like that. I just think we should find someone else.” She gestures to the rest of the Boardwalk. “It’s not like we don’t have options.”

“Surf Nazis?” Marko calls.

“Exactly!” Nadia exclaims, feeling a surge of relief wash through her. Marko grins.

“There’s plenty of those fucking assholes to tear into,” she says.

Dwayne’s expression softens as he shifts his gaze to Nadia. 

“Okay,” he whispers. “Yeah, okay.” 

She offers a comforting touch on his forearm and flashes him a grateful smile.

“If you’re real sweet on her, I’d suggest taking her on a date instead of ripping her apart.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Dwayne says with a smile.

David claps his gloved hands together and grins. He glances at Nadia.

“Lead the way, beautiful.”

“What?”

“You’re leading this hunt.”

Nadia laughs and waves her hands in front of her face.

“Oh no. I — I can’t.”

“We all had to learn sometime,” Paul replies. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the lack of updates. I'm working on a few chapters that are set at least 3-4 chapters ahead of where I am. I'm trying to tie everything together.


	13. Chapter 13

They sit in the trees, watching. The Surf Nazis sit around a large bonfire, shoving each other and screaming over a stereo blasting the worst punk music that Nadia has ever heard. She glances up at David. He’s laser focused, eyes narrowed and flitting from body to body. Paul, Dwayne, and Marko are snickering. David motions for Nadia to climb up to meet him. He points to a Surf Nazi who has drifted away from the group.

“See the one on the edge, stumbling all over himself?”

“Yeah.”

“Grab him first. We’ll follow you.”

“Now?”

David nods. Nadia takes a deep breath and jumps. The Surf Nazi collapses beneath her and she sinks her teeth into his neck. She hears screaming and flesh tearing beneath the sound of that horrific fucking music. Nadia closes her eyes and drinks deeply. He thrashes violently beneath her. She easily holds him down and drowns out his screaming. He tastes like the cheap beer from the Boardwalk, but she doesn’t care. She’s so fucking hungry. Eventually, the screams stop. Someone turns off the music. She keeps drinking, desperate to gulp down as much blood as she can stomach. After what seems like an eternity, she feels David’s hand on her back.

“Nadia.”

His voice is soft and encouraging. She lifts her head, blood dripping down her chin. She moans and breathes heavily. David crouches in front of her to meet her eyeline. His face has softened again and his eyes are warm.

“Nadia.”

“I need more,” she whines.

He brushes her hair out of her face and kisses her.

“It’s time to go.”

“But —”

“Come on. You need to get cleaned up.”

Dwayne, Marko, and Paul drag the Surf Nazi’s body to the bonfire while David helps Nadia get to her feet. She wobbles.

“I feel drunk.”

“You had too much.”

She belches.

“That’s a thing?”

David laughs.

“It’ll wear off in a few minutes. Just hang on to me.”

They get to the shoreline. Nadia crouches down and splashes cold water on her face. She watches the waves carry the blood on her hands away from the shore. David licks the blood off of his fingers and smiles at her. 

“You did good,” he purrs as she gets to her feet. He grabs her face and kisses her feverishly. She moans, tasting the blood in his mouth.

“Let’s go home,” she mumbles into his lips. Her fingers snake up his shirt and she sinks her nails into his skin. He closes his eyes and snarls.

“Easy, sweetness. The night’s still young.”

Nadia whimpers. He pulls away and cups her face in his hands. His thumb brushes her bottom lip.

“You look better,” he whispers. 

“I feel incredible.”

She reaches up his shirt again. He pulls away, chuckling.

“We’re in public,” he warns.

“Oh, like that’s ever stopped you before.” 

David lets out a loud, incredulous laugh. She shifts her focus and reaches into his jacket pocket for his cigarettes. David raises his eyebrows at her newfound boldness as she pops one into her mouth and tosses him the pack. He lights it for her. It tastes new, like the first time she ever smoked. The rush, the taste, the dizziness. Every sense is heightened. She can hear the sand shifting beneath her feet. 

“What?” He asks. 

“Nothing,” she laughs. “Look. I’m not exactly thrilled at the idea that murder gives me a boner.”

He laughs again, lighting his own cigarette. 

“Come on,” he says.

“Where are we going?”

“I told you. I met your parents, now you’re going to meet mine.”

Nadia belches again.

“I think I’m gonna puke.”

***

They climb off of their bikes, Dwayne and Paul leading the way. David leads her onto the Boardwalk and through the thick crowds. 

“Your dad hangs out on the Boardwalk?” She asks. “Is that the right term? Dad?”

“Sire,” David corrects her. “Like a guardian.”

“Why doesn’t he live with us?”

“Because Max is a respectable man!” Paul chides from the front. Marko, David, and Dwayne chuckle. Nadia furrows her eyebrows, ducking between two frat boys double fisting solo cups filled with beer. 

“I don’t get it.”

“Max is more about fitting in, keeping up appearances,” David muses.

“So, he’s…”

“A huge nerd!” Marko finishes.

“He owns Max’s Video Store.”

Nadia stops in her tracks.

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” She shrieks. “How did I not know this?!”

“Max likes to hide in plain sight,” Marko says.

They stop at the front door of the store. It swings open before Paul can grab the handle. A girl steps out. She has long, wavy black hair. She’s dressed in a white tank top, a soft purple and pink skirt. She has a beautiful, open face with wide eyes and a soft expression. She locks eyes with David. She smiles. Nadia’s lip flickers into a snarl. The girl slinks past them as Paul whistles at her. David’s eyes follow her down the Boardwalk as Paul, Marko, and Dwayne step into the store. Nadia smacks David on the arm.

“Sorry,” he purrs. “Thought I knew her from somewhere. Come on.”

He takes Nadia’s hand and pulls her into the store. It’s bright and bustling. Max is at the counter going over something with a girl who is not much older than Nadia. The boys do a loop around the shop, picking up videotapes and prodding at displays. Max’s head whips up and he flashes David a disapproving glare. He whispers something to the cashier. She nods her head quickly and heads into the back. Max motions for them to come up to the counter.

“What are you doing here?” He hisses. 

“Just popping in to say hi, Max,” David says, grinning. “I thought you would be happy to see us.”

“I am,” Max says, looking past them at the two customers who were still in the store. “But I told you: Never visit me at work.”

"We must not have gotten that memo," Dwayne quips.

Nadia steps on his boot. Dwayne smiles at her.

“There’s someone I want you to meet,” David says, drumming his hands on the counter. 

Max’s eyes flick toward Nadia. His expression softens and a smile flicks across his lips for a moment. She sheepishly sticks out her hand.

“Nadia,” she whispers. Max shakes her hand. His grip is warm and inviting.

“Pleasure to meet you, my dear. From what I understand, you’ve been acquainted with David and my boys for quite some time.”

She nods.

“Lovely,” he says cheerfully. “David, might I have a word with you in my office?”

David grins. 

“Lead the way, boss.”

Max leads him into his office and shuts the door behind them. Paul, Marko, and Dwayne lead Nadia outside.

***

Max’s office, much like him, is perfectly organized. Each item has a function and is always put back exactly where it belongs. His desk is sparsely decorated with a typewriter and a large manilla file folder packed with order forms. David leans over and presses a few keys on the typewriter.

“Stop that,” Max barks.

David shrugs.

“You don’t like her.”

Max sighs and slumps down into his chair. He takes off of his glasses and pinches the bridge of his nose.

“It’s not that,” he groans. “She’s lovely. She’s beautiful. Really.” He puts his glasses back on and stares at David, who is now leaning against the desk, arms crossed. His icy eyes locked on his Sire. 

“It’s just… We’ve discussed this.”

“I know.”

“Multiple times.”

“I _know_ , Max.”

David goes to light a cigarette. Max stands and snatches it out of his hand, towering over him. David sighs, annoyed and bites his lip.

“I couldn’t kill her.”

“You risk exposing us. You are not to turn anyone without my express permission. How many times do I have to make myself clear to you? Or do you specifically get off on disobeying me?”

“I mean…”

Max sticks his finger in David’s face. David stares up at him, grinning like an asshole.

“This the last time. You are not to break my rules again.”

They stand in silence for a moment. David huffs, smashes a cigarette between his lips, and storms out of Max’s office, slamming the door behind him. 


	14. Chapter 14

Nadia is leaned against the front window of the video store. Paul and Marko are catcalling girls on the boardwalk while Dwayne lights a cigarette. Nadia hears the front door as it smashes open, rattling the glass and almost hitting her in the face. Her hand darts out instinctively to stop it. David comes storming out, a scowl etched on his face. She and Dwayne exchange a puzzled glance.

“David?”

He whirls around and grabs her face, smashing his lips against hers. Nadia squeaks in surprise. The kiss is vicious at first, their teeth clacking together as he attempts to devour her. His breathing is shallow and erratic. Nadia inhales slowly in an attempt to get him to slow down.

_Easy, tiger._

He laughs against her lips and slows down, deepening the kiss. Nadia is captivated by his intensity and hooks her leg around his waist, pulling him closer. David snarls and she feels his hand snake up her shirt. He nips at her earlobe.

“You are so fucking beautiful,” he whispers. 

Her chest swells and now she begins to devour him. Her body hums. She’s not sure if it’s the mixture of blood and nicotine on his lips, or his sudden tenderness. Neither of them hear the front door swing open again - what they _do_ hear is Max clear his throat. David breaks the kiss and looks up at him, smug and defiant. Max looks less than pleased. 

“Can we help you?” David asks.

“You can take this somewhere else.” A beat. David ignores him, preferring to look back at Nadia and stroke her cheek. She would be embarrassed but he’s so absolutely fucking hypnotizing that she can’t take her eyes off of him. He leans back in to kiss her before Max interrupts.

“Go,” Max commands.

The boys snicker from the railing.

“Alright,” David whispers. “We’ll see you around, _Max_.”

Nadia glares at him 

_You’re obnoxious._

_Why do you look so turned on then?_

Nadia sighs, annoyed. David leads her away from the door - they hear Max call out to them.

“Boys — er, and, uh, Nadia.” He runs a hand through his hair. “Dinner. Tomorrow night. My place. We’ll do Chinese.”

David arches an eyebrow.

“What’s your angle, old man?”

Nadia steps on David’s foot.

“David,” she hisses.

“No angle,” Max chuckles. “Just a nice, family dinner. I have to keep you kids out of trouble somehow.”

“Can I smoke? I’m only coming if I can smoke."

“ _David_.”

Max sighs. 

“Sure. Fine. Be there after 10.”

***

Nadia and the boys spend some time wandering around the Boardwalk. Marko and Paul play Bean Bag Toss, and eventually start throwing bean bags at each other rather than trying to win a prize. The girl at the booth seems more interested in flirting with them than ensuring that they follow the rules. Nadia, Dwayne, and David watch from afar, sharing a joint. Nadia’s entire body continues to buzz from her kill earlier in the evening. She nips at David’s neck and, for the first time in a long time, the noxious combination of donut holes and cotton candy floating in the air doesn’t make her sick.

“Nadia!”

She turns to see Reilly walking toward her, the characteristic bounce in her step was missing. She walked like someone was pushing her from behind, each step heavier than the last. As she gets closer, Nadia sees tear stains on her cheeks. Her eyes are puffy and red from crying. Her nose is red.

“Reilly, wh --”

“Can I talk to you?” Reilly says weakly through sniffles.

“Sure.”

Reilly shoves her hands in the pockets of her jeans and stares at her feet.

“Alone.”

“Oh, um, yeah.” She turns to David. “I’ll be right back."

David nods. Reilly leads her onto the beach, wiping her nose on the sleeve of her sweatshirt. Nadia lights two cigarettes and offers Reilly one.

“Thanks.”

Nadia’s eyebrows knit together in confusion as she watches Reilly pace in front of her.

“Reilly, babe, what is it?”

“I, uh, I have to…” she clears her throat and takes another drag from her cigarette. “I have to tell you something.”

“What is it? Did something happen with Mick?” Nadia steps forward and grabs Reilly by the shoulders, forcing her friend to make eye contact. “Did he hurt you?”

Reilly shakes her head.

“I haven’t talked to him since we all got super drunk at the beer garden. It’s something else, I --”

She bursts into tears. Nadia feels her chest rip open and Reilly wraps her arms around her, sobbing. Nadia feels everything - all of the anger, the fear, the hopelessness - pour out of her best friend. It takes Reilly a moment to catch her breath. She pulls away and locks eyes with Nadia. 

“Nadia, I’m sick.”

“What?”

They move to sit on a large piece of driftwood near David’s bike. Reilly takes a long pull on her cigarette.

“I’ve been getting these headaches and sometimes my vision will go dark. It started with -- it was like, ten or fifteen seconds. And the headaches… they got really bad. A couple of days ago, my mom finally sent me to the hospital because I kind of freaked out and they had me tested.” She sucks in a deep breath. “I have a brain tumor.”

Nadia feels fear, hot and writhing in the pit of her stomach. She thinks about Dominique; about holding her lifeless hand while the world continued to spin outside their bedroom door. Her guts twist violently. 

“H-H- Uh, how long has this been going on?”

“A few months.”

Nadia rests her hand on Reilly’s knee.

“Why didn’t you say something?” she pleads.

Tears drip onto the sand.

“I didn’t want it to be real,” Reilly whispers.

Nadia wraps her arms around Reilly and feels her shoulders begin to shake as she sobs quietly.

“What are your options?” Nadia asks.

“Radiation. There’s not much they can do, though. I’ve got two years - three if I’m really lucky.”

Nadia glances at her, watching the full weight of what she’s just said sink in. Something changes; settles.

_I won’t lose you._

She clears her throat and stomps on her cigarette.

“What --” she sighs; collects herself. “What if I told you I can help you?”

Reilly pushes her hair out of her face, her warm brown eyes shine with tears.

“What are you talking about?”

Nadia puts her head in her hands and sighs. She’s sure she’s breaking some stupid vampire rule. David scolded her about exposing them, but this is different - special circumstances, if you will. She laughs into her palms and runs her hands through her hair.

“Fuck, now I have something to tell you.”

“If you tell me we’re brain tumor twins, I’m going to walk into the fucking ocean right now.”

Nadia stares blankly at her.

“You can laugh,” Reilly urges. “It was supposed to be funny.”

“I’m a vampire,” Nadia says flatly.

There's really no good segue, no way to cushion the revelation. She waits and bites her lip. Reilly’s eyes become saucers. Her jaw drops, and a low laugh begins to escape her throat. Within seconds, she’s in stitches, holding her stomach and wiping away newer, happier tears. Nadia nods, it’s not like she expected a different reaction. It sounds stupid, even to her. 

“Are you high? Are you smoking crack? Is that what you do with David now? Crack?”

“I’m serious, Reilly.”

More laughter.

“That’s the stupidest fucking thing I’ve ever heard in my life, Nadia! Do you realize how insane you sound?!”

“I can show you.”

Reilly snickers and shakes head in disbelief.

“Okay, yeah. Show me. Then I’m getting David to take you to the fucking psych ward.”

Nadia closes her eyes and breathes deeply. Something shifts, the monster steps forward. When she opens them, her eyes are golden, glowing amber and she feels her fangs drop. She prays her face hasn’t twisted and morphed the way it does when she feeds. Reilly gasps, covers her mouth to keep from screaming and scrambles off the log, tripping over her own feet and kicking up clouds of sand.

“WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!” she bellows.

“I told you, I’m not lying.”

“Is this why you’ve been so fucking weird lately?”

Nadia nods.

“Is David -- Oh my _God_ , Nadia! David?!”

“Paul, Marko, and Dwayne, too.”

Reilly bends over and puts her hands on her knees. She breathes deeply, trying to calm herself down. Nadia waits.

“I can help you.”

“How? By murdering me?”

“I can make you one of us.”

More incredulous laughter. Reilly shakes her head and takes another step backward. 

“Oh, no. No, no, no - FUCK no!”

“Would you rather die?” Nadia challenges. “You said it yourself, you have two years - three if you’re really lucky.”

“I --”

Nadia stands and wraps her arms around her best friend. Her fingers swim through Reilly’s long, mousy-brown hair. Nadia’s gaze is pleading, desperate. Reilly twitches and looks down as more tears spill down her cheeks. Nadia brings her hand up to rest near the crown of Reilly’s head.

“Let me take this away,” she whispers through tears. “I won’t lose you. Not like this.”

“What do I have to do?” she asks.

“You’d have to drink my blood, and then you’d have to make your first kill.”

“That’s really fucked up.”

“We can teach you.”

“Nadia, I --” she sighs and presses her forehead to Nadia’s. “Can I think about it? Just for tonight?”

“Of course you can.”

“Nadia!” David’s voice cuts through the air. 

“I’ve gotta go,” Nadia whispers. “Meet me here tomorrow night after you’ve thought about it?”

“Can’t I just call you?”

“I don’t exactly…live at home anymore.”

Reilly chuckles.

“You’re the only person I know whose life can get this complicated in a fucking week.”

Nadia smiles and hugs her tightly.

“Nadia!” David’s voice has an edge to it. 

Reilly nods as Nadia pulls away.

“Okay, tomorrow night. Midnight?”

“Midnight is good,” Nadia replies, heading back toward the boys. “Wait for me by the carousel.”

“Okay.” Reilly gives her a limp wave. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Nadia smiles. “You’re gonna be okay.”


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm avoiding homework, so here's some porn!
> 
> ...and some backstory.
> 
> just to clarify, the word "toots" is used in this chapter, but NOT TO MEAN FART. i didn't even realize it while i was writing it and then i posted it and laughed a lot, but i thought i would put this note up just in case.
> 
> "Toots: (slang, sometimes derogatory) Babe, sweetie: a term used when addressing a young woman, especially one perceived as being sexually available."
> 
> okay. thank you. enjoy this chapter and thank you all again for reading and posting such lovely comments <3

Nadia lies awake, staring at the ceiling. Her mind races, but her body remains still and exhausted. The day seems to drag on as she falls in and out of consciousness. She’s startled awake by nightmares, her muscles twitching and jerking with fear while David lays motionless beside her. In one, she’s standing next to Reilly’s coffin while the sound of an EKG flatlining rings in her ears. It’s an on the nose kind of nightmare, but it jolts Nadia awake all the same. Her stomach ties itself into a thousand knots. The room spins and she blinks away tears. 

She has to stop this.

She feels David shift beside her. His arms snake around her waist and his lips brush against her earlobe. She sighs and smiles, grateful to forget about Reilly for a moment. He nuzzles against her shoulder blade.

“What’s rattling around in that big brain of yours, gorgeous?”

His voice is thick and sleepy. Nadia rolls onto her side to face him, running her fingers up and down his bicep. David flashes her a wolfish grin, his eyelids still heavy.

“Nothing important,” she whispers.

She doesn’t feel great lying to him, but she’s slightly terrified about what would happen if she told him about Reilly; about tonight. He kisses her. It’s gentle and loving. His lips drop to her neck. She forgets everything in an instant. Instinctively, she wraps her arms around his wiry frame and sighs into his lips as his hands dance across her body. He feels like home.

“David,” she moans softly as he ghosts his lips across her skin. He growls.

“I like that."

“Like what?”

“When you moan my name."

He moves down her body, capturing her nipple with his teeth. Nadia gasps.

“David.”

“I love you like this,” he purrs.

She grins.

“Only like this?”

His head flicks up and his icy eyes burn into hers. Nadia swallows hard, embarrassed, and smiles again to soften the question. 

“Don’t do that,” he breathes.

Nadia strokes his cheek. She tries to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach. He kisses her palm.

“Not ready for that conversation?” she asks.

He bites his lip.

“Not yet.”

There’s a heaviness that settles between them. She knows it’s something they won’t talk about for a long time, if they talk about it at all. She knows she has to be okay with that. Nadia kisses him again to reassure him. 

“That’s okay.”

David’s eyes burn into hers for a moment. He takes her face in his hands and kisses her. It’s slow and soft. Loving. Nadia moans. They roll around on the bed, giggling as they become a tangle of lips, tongues, and limbs. She feels herself melting into him. How does he do this? He flips her onto her back and runs his lips down her body. He nips at her breasts, her stomach, and her hipbones. Goosebumps dance across her skin. Nadia writhes beneath him, gasping and mewling softly. There’s a newfound gentleness in his touch. She feels David’s lips, and then his teeth sink into her inner thigh. A gutteral moan echoes through the room. And then she feels his tongue between her folds. She cries out again, arching her back. She grips the sheets like they’re the last thing she’ll ever hold on to. She doesn’t notice her knuckles turning white. His hands run up her body and massage her breasts. He rolls her nipples between his thumb and forefinger while his tongue circles her clit. 

“Oh God!”

Her body squirms beneath his mouth. He holds her down gently and digs his nails into her skin. Nadia’s eyes roll back and she whimpers uncontrollably as pleasure begins to coil and build in the pit of her stomach. Suddenly, David stops and she feels his mouth on hers. She whimpers his name into his lips as he enters her slowly. His fingers brush her hair away from her face. He runs his thumb across her bottom lip. His eyes are filled with a tenderness she rarely sees. She’s used to the way his lip curls into a smirk. She likes this shift. A lot. She’s putty in his hands. It takes everything for her not to blurt out “I love you”. 

Why ruin a good thing? 

Nadia wraps her legs around his waist and feels him thrust deeper into her. He moans, his voice soft and gentle. Fuck, he’s so beautiful when he unravels. More goosebumps. She pulls him into a ferocious kiss. David continues his slow thrusts, driving her crazy. Their eyes lock. Nadia grips his biceps as he quickens his pace, moaning and breathing heavily. Nadia’s eyelids flutter as she feels her orgasm begin to build. She cups his face with one hand. His moans grow louder. Nadia comes hard, digging her heels into David’s back. She cries out bites down on her lip. David grabs her chin and turns her head toward him.

“Look at me,” he groans.

Nadia meets his eyes. His body begins to tremble as he comes. She strokes his arms lovingly as he buries his face in her neck, biting down on her skin.

“FUCK!” he cries out.

Nadia's fingers swim through his hair as his hips come to a gradual stop. She hears his distinct muffled, gravelly laughter as he traces kisses up her neck and along her jawline. She giggles softly.

“You okay?”

“Yeah,” he whispers. “I like this a lot. I like us.”

It’s the most genuine expression of emotion she’s seen from him other than anger. She’s forgotten about Reilly, about tonight. For a moment, it’s just the two of them as the world spins outside of the cave. For a moment, nothing else matters except for his angelic face and his gorgeous blue eyes burning into hers. She blinks away tears.

“I like us too.”

He kisses her softly before rolling off of her and grabbing his cigarettes.

“Okay, now I have to be cool again,” he mumbles.

Nadia laughs loudly. He pops two cigarettes in his mouth, lights both, and passes one to her.

“Don’t tell anyone I was ever this --”

“Human?”

David groans with disgust and shakes his head. 

“Paul and Marko would never let me live it down.”

Nadia puffs on her cigarette and runs her fingers through his electric blonde hair.

“Your secret’s safe with me, super cool guy.”

“Thanks, toots.”

She guffaws and coughs, her eyes wide with disbelief.

“Toots?”

He shrugs.

“I’m being cool.”

“Yeah,” Nadia counters, giggling. “That’s really cool. I haven’t heard a man call a woman that since the 40s. You do know what year it is, right?”

“I’m a man from a different time,” he muses, grinning.

“How old  _ are _ you? You never answered me before.”

Instantly, the energy in the room shifts. She holds her breath. He’s quiet. Contemplative. It feels like his age is a secret he doesn’t reveal often. She doesn’t really understand why. Nadia stares at him, her body tense. She’s waiting for him to make another stupid joke, but part of her just wishes that he would trust her and tell her the fucking truth.

“I was nineteen when the earthquake sunk this hotel. That story I told your parents about growing up in Colorado? Losing the farm? It’s all true. We came here. My mom got a job at this hotel cleaning rooms. Things were okay. I had a girlfriend, our lives were starting over. And then I lost her, my mom… everyone.”

“How did you become a vampire?”

“My house collapsed. I managed to get out, but a huge shard of glass had gotten lodged in my chest.”

He takes her hand and presses it against a faint scar near his heart. If she weren’t looking closely, she would have missed it.

“I was dying. Max found me. He saved me.”

Nadia kisses his scar softly.

“What was her name?” she asks. 

“Who?”

“Your girlfriend.”

He smiles.

“Alice.”

Nadia fingers a hole in the satin sheet. 

“Was she pretty?”

“Yeah,” he says, staring straight ahead. “She looked a lot like you.”

“Is that why you picked me?”

“I don’t know.”

David glances at her, expression soft and open. Pained. Nadia feels embarrassed for asking so many questions, like she’s listening to information she shouldn’t be hearing. She gets the feeling that David keeps this all very secret. She doesn’t blame him. She inches closer to him and feels him wrap a spindly arm around her shoulders. They sit in comfortable silence for a long time until Nadia feels her eyes grow heavy and sleep claims her.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is a shorter chapter - i wanted to get something up for y'all <3
> 
> thank you so much for sticking with this story, it's been such an unexpected delight to work on :3

She’s tense the entire ride to Max’s. Her mind has, inevitably, wandered and fixated on Reilly. The secret she’s keeping looms over her, impossible and crushing. David, on the other hand, weaves through passing cars, whooping like an actual teenage boy. He and Dwayne threaten to swerve into one another while screaming obscenities and laughing. Nadia is so deep in thought that she barely notices when Dwayne clips David’s bike, causing it to veer into oncoming traffic. David lets out a primal scream, laughing maniacally. He whips past Dwayne, flipping him off as he turns onto Max’s street. 

Their bikes rumble to a halt in front of a long driveway. Nadia feels almost breathless. She’s not sure if it’s from the ride or from getting so utterly lost in a maze of her own anxiety that a way out feels like an impossibility. What if Reilly says no? What happens when David finds out? How is she going to keep this from Max? He’s older than David, far more powerful, and more intuitive. She has to stay focused. Engaged. Keep all thoughts of tonight out of her mind until they hop on their bikes and peel out of his driveway. 

Crickets chirp in the distance and she looks around. It’s peaceful here. Inviting. Max puts up a hell of a front. Just as she takes a moment (and a breath) to enjoy her surroundings, the boys begin to climb off of their bikes. Nadia looks around and spots a large white dog behind Max’s white picket fence. Max seems to be obsessed with the most boring shade on the planet. She opens her mouth to make a snide comment, when the dog sniffs at the air and immediately begins to bark, rearing up and putting its front paws on the gate in an effort to look intimidating. It’s working. David climbs off of the bike while Nadia’s eyes glaze over. She’s paralyzed with fear. The other boys snicker. Paul whistles at the beast, causing more vicious barking. Nadia stares daggers at him.

“What’s the matter, Princess? You don’t like dogs?” David teases.

“I don’t like dogs that want to rip my fucking head off,” she quips.

Marko chuckles.

“Thorn’s all talk.”

Nadia throws him a look of utter disbelief.

“The name choice doesn’t exactly make me feel better.”

David laughs. Paul, Marko, and Dwayne snicker.

“Check this out,” David says softly.

He nods at Marko, who strolls over to the gate and stares at Thorn. Thorn snarls as Marko reaches over and gingerly places his hand on Thorn’s head. The snarling stops and he lets out a contented yip. Nadia tilts her head in fascination. He’s actually quite beautiful when he doesn’t look like he wants to rip the five of them to pieces. Marko makes soft kissing noises and strokes the side of Thorn’s head. In a gesture of trust, Thorn licks Marko’s fingers and drops down from the fence. Marko whirls around, grinning proudly. Nadia’s jaw drops. 

“How did you do that?”

Marko flashes her a smug grin. 

“It’s a gift.”

Nadia looks at the rest of them. 

“Do the rest of you know how to do that?”

David, Paul, and Dwayne shake their heads.

“Marko’s got a thing with animals,” David says, pulling his gloves off and stuffing them into his pocket. “I’ve never understood it.”

“Wait,” Nadia says, pulling a cigarette out of her pocket and lighting it. “When you’re a vampire, do you get, like, one specific power? Like being able to chill out crazy animals or, like, set things on fire by blinking…”

“Set things on fire?” David laughs.

“I’m just spitballing!” Nadia exclaims. 

“Did you smoke any of that weed that was lying by the fountain before we got here?” Paul teases. 

The boys snicker as Nadia gracefully sticks her middle finger in Paul’s face. Marko laughs.

“I’ve always been able to do this,” he says softly. “Even before I was turned.”

“Damn,” Nadia whispers.

David lets out an incredulous laugh.

“Nadia, you’re immortal and you can fly. What more do you want?”

“All of us can do that. That’s not special.”

David chuckles and shakes his head as Marko opens the gate to let them in. Thor scampers happily beside Marko, panting and nipping at his fingers. David’s arm snakes around her waist and he pulls her close. Nadia nuzzles into his neck as they walk, sighing, and trying to fight the dread that’s growing in the pit of her stomach. David stops her as the rest of the boys walk up to Max’s door. His eyes dig into hers. If she had the ability to sweat, she would. She wonders if he already knows.

“What’s wrong?” he asks. 

“Nothing.”

“Look at me,” he commands.

“I am.”

“Really look at me.”

Nadia stares, unblinking. She reaches up and kisses him. He groans as his fingers dance through her hair. Marko, Paul, and Dwayne whistle and laugh behind them. Nadia tears her lips away from his, grinning. 

“I’m fine, David.”

“That wasn’t fair,” he growls.

“You do this to me all the time. What’s payback taste like, asshole?”

“Pretty good,” he purrs.

He tries to pull her close, but Nadia jumps backward, grinning. She turns on her heel and begins to walk toward the house, hearing David let out a low chuckle behind her. Max is waiting in the doorway, dressed in a crisp white linen suit. She has to fight to keep from rolling her eyes. He’s grinning as he watches Thorn tear away from Marko and bound toward him. Max gives the dog a few gentle scratches before motioning for the five of them to come inside. 

His house is immaculate, yet lived in. Everything has a cupboard or a designated hidey-hole. Max leads them down a long hallway toward the dining room. A series of abstract paintings line the walls, with the odd photo of Thorn thrown into the mix. Something catches her eye, however. A small photo near the dining room of Max and a petite woman in a long white dress. She wants to ask about it, but thinks better of herself. Instead, she leans over to Marko.

“This place is nice.”

Marko makes a face like he’s just tasted something awful.

“Too clean for me.”

“Says the guy who keeps his underwear in a beer cooler.”

“I thought only Paul knew about that,” he whispers, staring at her in disbelief. “How did you know about that?”

“I think it’s a natural tendency to notice oddities about your friends.”

“Knew about what?” Paul asks, his voice booming through the hallway. “What are you guys talking about?”

“Nothing,” Marko hisses. “Keep your voice down.”

Nadia bites back laughter and Marko gives her a playful shove. Up ahead, David walks beside Max, who is speaking so softly that Nadia can’t make out a single word. David nods his head every once in a while and glances over his shoulder at Nadia. She manages a small smile and he tosses her a mischievous wink. Her stomach flutters. They reach the dining room. A large, dark wooden table adorned with simple white china. Takeout boxes are neatly arranged in the middle. Everyone takes their seats in relative silence, except Paul, who is still trying to figure out what the fuck Nadia and Marko were talking about. Marko shushes him and they begin to tousle at the table. 

“Boys!” Max snaps. “Behave yourselves.”

“He started it!” Paul cries.

“I don’t care who started it. There’s no roughhousing at the table!”

Marko shoots Nadia a wink from across the table and she manages to stifle most of her laughter. She likes Marko - he’s bright and sweet. He’s quiet, but he’s always watching. David leans over.

“What’s so funny, gorgeous?”

“Those two,” she says gesturing to Paul and Marko, who have now been separated by Dwayne.

“To tell you the truth, I don’t even notice it anymore. They drive Max up the fucking wall.”

“I’ve noticed.”

David’s hand drifts down to the top of her thigh and he absentmindedly draws small circles on the fabric of her jeans while his eyes lock with hers. They’re soft and glittering with sweetness. David opens his mouth to say something but stops himself when Nadia’s brow twitches with confusion.

“What?”

“Nothing,” he laughs.

Nadia narrows her eyes at him as everyone begins to dig into the takeout. 

_What are you hiding?_

David shrugs as he scoops rice onto his plate.

_Nothing._

He's a terrible liar.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another short chapter. I'm so sorry! This was meant to be part of the last chapter, but I just couldn't get it right until now. There's a chapter between Nadia and Reilly that will be next that has been a pain in my ass to write. All the dialogue has felt wrong and I didn't feel right posting it if I would just edit it a thousand times. I've still got to comb through and fix a lot of it, but it should be up fairly soon <3 Thank y'all so much for sticking with this mess of a story lol I appreciate you all!! <3 
> 
> I've also put together a playlist that I've been writing to since the beginning of the story. I figured I would post it if anyone was interested in listening to what I listen to while I write this lol. It's just a bunch of random shit, but I like it. You can find the playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpT2b1hG2GyY6fTd8jEJr3DEhkVdYS06_ - I'll be adding to it pretty frequently.

“Boys,” Max cuts in. “I brought you here tonight to discuss something with you. I think it’s important that we talk about it as a family.”

Nadia scans the table. Beside her, David lets out a small, but annoyed sigh. Dwayne narrows his eyes and sets his chopsticks neatly next to his plate, while Marko and Paul exchange a suspicious look. Nadia is left to sit in utter confusion, waiting for Max to begin his next sentence. 

“Boys, I think you need some extra guidance that I may not be able to provide,” he says, taking a sip of his wine.

David’s eyes narrow.

“What are you talking about?” he can’t seem to keep the snarl out of his question. Max leans back in his chair and locks eyes with his protege. 

“You boys run completely wild. You have no respect for my rules, you’re turning people without my permission, and I don’t know if you’ve  _ cared _ to take notice of this, David, but the entire boardwalk is plastered with missing person’s posters.” He leans forward, his gaze intense and threatening. Nadia swallows hard and bites her lip. “You need a mother.”

Marko and Paul begin to chuckle in disbelief while David looks like he’s just tasted something awful. He drops his chopsticks onto his plate and huffs. 

“This is bullshit.”

“Language!” Max barks. “Do you want to get found out? There are a lot of dangerous people out there.”

David lets out a low chuckle.

“Like who?” He leans forward, challenging Max with every ounce of vitriol in his body. "Who's gonna stop us, Max?"

Max takes another sip of wine and clears his throat.

“My decision is final, David.”

“Do you even have anyone in mind?” 

“I’ve got feelers out,” Max replies casually.

David drums on the table, annoyed and barely contained. A new vampire challenging his authority feels like a recipe for disaster. He takes a cigarette out of his pocket and tuts softly when Max opens his mouth to object.

“You promised,” he taunts.

Nadia’s eyes flick toward the clock and she chews nervously on her lip while the rest of the boys eat in relative silence save for Marko and Paul snickering and elbowing each other. Max doesn’t live far from the boardwalk. She prays dinner doesn’t go for much longer - she has to see Reilly. Everything in her gut screams at her to leave, to run or fly to the boardwalk as fast as she can. 

Thorn rears up near Marko and whines at him until Marko breaks a fortune cookie in half and tosses it over his shoulder. Thorn gobbles it up; Max doesn’t seem to mind. 

“Nadia,” Max says, cutting into her thoughts. “You’ve barely touched your food.” 

She picks up her chopsticks as Max’s eyes stay fixated on her, trying to penetrate her thoughts. The rest of the boys turn their attention to her and the air feels thick.

_ Shit. _

She imagines a large, unscalable brick wall as she swirls her rice around on her plate. It feels stupid, but it might just work.

_ Block him out, block him out, block him out _ . 

“You seem… preoccupied,” he finishes.

Nadia smiles, wide and warm, making sure it touches her eyes. 

“I’m fine.”

“Leave her alone,” David snaps. “I told you not to do that.”

“Do what?” Max asks.

“Stick your nose where it doesn’t belong.”

Max chuckles.

“David, I know you’re upset, but you have to trust me. A mother would be good for you."

David's lip curls into a snarl as he stubs his cigarette out onto his half-finished plate. His chair makes a loud scraping noise against the hardwood as he pushes it away from the table.

“We’ll talk about this later,” he growls. “Nadia? Boys? Let’s go.”

Without questioning him, everyone gets up and moves toward the hallway. Max remains seated, glaring up at David. The tension between them is heavy and slightly terrifying. Max looks like he could rip David’s throat out in one swift motion. Nadia can feel David's anger radiating off of him. It's enough to make the muscles in her chest tighten and a wave of adrenaline courses through her. She shuts her eyes, trying to push it out; trying not to let thoughts about Reilly in. She slinks out of the room, drawing in a deep breath once she’s out in the hallway. Marko pulls her into a quick side hug.

“You sure you’re all right?” he asks softly.

“Yeah, it’s just…”

“I know,” Marko replies. “They’ve always been like this.”

David comes flying out of the dining room, his coat billowing behind him and his face twisted into a scowl. Marko retracts his arm quickly and he motions for Nadia to follow behind David. The door slams behind them, David storms down the driveway and Nadia is forced to practically scamper behind him. She says nothing, too afraid of the storm building within him. He’ll get over this, but it’s going to take a good hunt or a good fuck, whichever comes first. Nadia climbs onto the back of his bike and feels David grasp her chin. His eyes pierce hers with ferocity and longing.

“What did he see?” he whispers. 

Anxiety explodes in the pit of her stomach and she has the urge to vomit all over the pavement. Instead, she swallows hard and takes a deep breath.

“Nothing,” she chokes.

His fingers swim through her hair and he finally breaks eye contact, much to her relief.

“Boys? We’re going hunting.”

“Fuck yeah!” Paul shouts as he revs his engine and they disappear into the night. 


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another short chapter. I really wanted to get this up because I've written very far ahead again. Whoops.

David and the boys go off hunting while Nadia practically sprints to the carousel. She passes a large wall where kids have spray painted graffiti and tacked up concert flyers. A white piece of paper with the word “MISSING” and a familiar face on it catches her eye. Nadia stops dead in her track and slinks over to the wall. She scans the poster and feels her jaw drop. 

Nathan.

“Fuck.” 

Carefully, she glances around to make sure that no one is looking before stuffing the flyer in the inside pocket of her leather jacket. She checks for duplicates on the wall. None. 

_Thank God._

Nadia sighs and trudges toward the carousel, feeling a pit growing in her stomach. She waits, impatient and smoking furiously as people board the carousel. The security guard eyes her suspiciously, but she’s too deep in thought to give a shit. David said he and the boys took care of it, but she can’t shake the nervousness. She sighs, and then senses something - a heart beating like rolling thunder. It almost hurts to listen to.

“Nadia?” a soft voice calls.

She turns around. Reilly, pale, swimming in a massive black t-shirt that’s three sizes too big for her, shredded jeans, and combat boots. She already looks like one of them. Nadia grins, races toward her and wraps her in a tight hug.

“Babe,” she whispers. “I was worried you wouldn’t show up.”

“The cops came by my parent’s place,” Reilly says, ignoring the greeting. “They’re looking for Nathan.”

Nadia swallows hard and lets go of Reilly’s shoulders.

“I can explain.”

“I don’t know if I want to hear it,” Reilly hisses, her voice tense with anger and exhaustion. Her face crumples, tears spill down her cheeks, and she shoves a hand through her hair. “God, this is all fucked.”

“I can fix it,” Nadia pleads, tears stinging her eyes. “Let me fix it. Please.”

“How do I know you’re not just gonna kill me?”

Her words are like a knife to the gut. Nadia resists the urge to cry, to run her hands through Reilly’s hair and hug her as tightly as she can.

"I would never hurt you."

"I'm not sure about that," Reilly counters. "I don't even know who you are anymore."

Nadia steps backward, fists clenched until her knuckles are bone white. 

“If you were just going to say no, why show up at all?” she whispers. “You could have just run. But you didn’t.”

Reilly eyes her suspiciously. Nadia takes the opportunity to turn on the charm – just like David would. She composes herself and lights a cigarette, letting the smoke seep out of her mouth and unfurl around them.

“Aren’t you the least bit curious?” she asks. “What it would be like?”

“I know what you’re trying to do,” Reilly whispers through clenched teeth.

“Then _do it_ ,” Nadia breathes. “Be one of us.”

“Nadia…”

She drops the act and throws her cigarette down onto the ground, stomping on it furiously.

“Goddammit, Reilly, I’m trying to save your fucking life!” she yells. "Do you want to die? Is that what you want?!"

“Will you shut the fuck up?!" Reilly hisses. She pauses for a long time and chews nervously on her pinky nail. “What do I have to do?”

“Come with me.”

Nadia turns on her heel and begins to lead her off of the boardwalk.

"Where are we going?"

"Just trust me."

They walk in silence for what seems like an eternity - past drunken teenagers making out in the sand and small pockets of people sitting or dancing around small bonfires. Reilly trudges a few feet behind Nadia. The tension between them is thick. Nadia ignores it and they walk until they finally find a secluded spot on the beach, nestled in almost total darkness. There's a small rocky overhang just above them that provides enough cover so that nobody would be able to tell what they were doing. Nadia checks to make sure the boys haven’t parked their bikes anywhere near here (just in case) and sits down on a large log, encouraging Reilly to sit beside her. Reilly pulls the neck of her t-shirt down so that it sits just off of her shoulder and tilts her neck to the side. Nadia stares at her in disbelief.

“What the fuck are you doing?”

“I thought this was how you guys did it. I mean, it’s kind of homoerotic, but you've gotta do what you've gotta do, I guess.”

“Reilly --"

“I’m just stating facts!” A beat. Reilly makes a come hither gesture with her free hand. “Come on. Bite me.”

“You’re embarrassing yourself.”

“Oh, I’m sorry! I have no idea what the fuck I’m doing! It’s not like they make how-to manuals for this shit!”

Nadia laughs and pulls the cuff of her jacket back so that her wrist is exposed. She takes a deep breath and feels her nails extend into knife-like claws. Reilly’s heartbeat echoes in her ears and she struggles to keep her face from fully morphing into something monstrous. She cuts vertically and hears Reilly gasp.

“Nadia --”

“Vampire,” Nadia whispers. “Remember?”

She extends her arm toward Reilly.

“Drink.”

“What?”

Blood drips onto the sand. Nadia snarls, trying to keep the beast at bay.

“Drink!” she commands.

“You couldn’t put this in some whiskey or something--”

“REILLY I SWEAR TO GOD!”

“OKAY! OKAY!”

Reilly’s lips touch her skin, her fingers wrapping delicately around Nadia's forearm. She drinks and Nadia feels herself let out a relieved sigh. It’s over now. The agony of what mortality had in store for her best friend slowly melts away and makes room for a flood of relief and euphoria. She couldn’t save Dominique, but she could save her best friend. That had to count for something. Reilly continues to drink, deeper now. Nadia strokes her hair for a few seconds before gently pulling her wrist away. Reilly groans, desperately trying to latch back on.

“Nadia, please.”

“That’s enough, babe.”

“I need it,” she whines.

Nadia strokes her cheek and smiles.

"Do you feel different?"

Reilly belches and raises her hands in the air.

"Imean I guesso? Idunno."

“We’re not done.”

Reilly's eyes go wide and she lets out a hopeful gasp.

“I can have more?”

She leans toward Nadia who pushes her away gently by the shoulder, almost knocking her completely off balance. Nadia steadies her.

“No, you can't have anymore."

“But--”

“Listen to me very closely. In the next few days you’re going to have to do something. I’ll teach you. But you have to promise me that you’ll trust me. Can you do that? And then we’re going to be together forever. Remember when we promised each other that? We did that spit pact."

Reilly nods, her eyelids drooping. Nadia sighs, scoops her up from the log and slings a spindly, limp arm around her shoulder. She guesses this is what she must have been like when David dropped her off the night she was turned. It seems so long ago now. The thought of him sense a shock of nervousness through her system but she buries it. She’ll deal with him later.

“Where’rewe going?” Reilly slurs.

“I’m gonna walk you home, babe.”

“Mmkaaaaayyyy…”

They stumble off of the beach not realizing that someone’s been watching them from the rocks.


	19. Chapter 19

Nadia arrives back at the boardwalk just in time to see the boys strolling up. David leads the pack while the other three are behind him in a loose v formation. They’re bickering about something. Paul looks pissed, tossing sneers at his brothers every few seconds while Dwayne and Marko openly mock him. David is silent, smoking, his eyes fixed on Nadia as she leans against a bike rack.

“Paul, all I’m saying is that you’re not exactly a feminist,” Dwayne says.

Paul’s face twists into an expression of disbelief.

“What’s that supposed to mean?!”

“I thought I was pretty clear,” Dwayne offers, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“I was complimenting her and then she just full-on punched me! _That’s_ not very… What’s the opposite of feminist?”

“You,” Dwayne laughs. Marko snickers and they bump fists.

“Fuck both of you,” Paul growls.

Marko laughs and drapes an arm over his brother's shoulder. Paul elbows him in the ribs.

“Bro, you can’t yell nice rack at a chick and expect good results.”

“It was a compliment! How many times do I have to say it?!” Paul yells.

“You’re unbelievable, dude,” Marko laughs.

Paul pouts. Nadia’s brow furrows in confusion as they approach and their conversation grows oddly silent.

“What’s going on?” she asks.

The tension grows thick. Fast. Nadia searches the faces of her brothers for a sign, an explanation. They all avoid eye contact. Without warning, David grabs her roughly and kisses her. Hard. She gasps and brings her fingers up to the lapel of his jacket. She tastes new blood. Young. A woman. Nadia pulls away, her lips lush and swollen.

“Hello to you too,” she laughs.

He’s different. There’s a sudden wall between them that sends a cold chill down her spine.

“Where were you.” It’s a command, not a question. His eyes are daggers that pierce into hers, searching. He knows – or at least he suspects that something’s off.

“I was hanging out with Reilly.”

David lets out a hollow chuckle.

“And where’s she?”

Nadia’s eyes flick to look at each of the boys. Paul looks confused (which isn’t weird), Dwayne’s eyes are narrowed at her in suspicion, while Marko’s bore into hers with a mixture of intensity and understanding. Do they all know?

“She went home,” Nadia says, suddenly feeling like a kid who’s in big trouble.

“That’s interesting,” David says softly. His voice is low and dangerous, cutting through her like a knife. Nadia feels panic shoot through her body. “Where were you… hanging out?”

Anger flares in the pit of her stomach and she backs away from him.

“What’s with the third degree?”

“We know, Nadia,” Marko answers. His voice is soft and gentle, a perfect reflection of his wide blue eyes and delicate face. “Max saw you two on the beach. He told us what you did.”

She laughs, trying to keep her voice from shaking.

“I don't know what you're --"

David lunges at her, grabbing her by the throat. Not enough to hurt her, but enough to show her just how powerful he can actually be. Her eyes go wide and she can’t help but gasp. She feels herself beginning to shake like a leaf. The harder she tries to stop it, the worse it gets.

“Don’t play dumb with me,” he hisses. His eyes glow amber and his face is twisted into an ugly scowl. She can feel the anger radiating off of him and sense it in her blood. Their bond was too strong. She should have known she wouldn’t have been able to hide this from him forever, or at all. Nadia grasps his wrist with one hand. Her eyes plead with him. She reaches out through the darkness to connect with him, to tell him why she did it, but is met with a brick wall inside of her mind.

“David,” Marko says softly. “Come on, man. Put her down.”

“Fuck off, Marko,” David snaps. “This doesn’t concern you.”

“She’s our sister,” Marko pleads. Nadia locks eyes with him and he greets her gaze with compassion and understanding.

_Thank you._

David snarls and practically tosses her onto the ground. Nadia clamours to her feet, her eyes welling up with tears. Whatever love or affection he had for her has either been put away, or it’s just gone. She can’t feel anything between them right now – only his white hot anger. The rest of the boys observe the situation with concern. Marko chews nervously on his thumb nail, his eyes fixed on Nadia.

“You directly disobeyed orders,” David spits.

“You do it all the time!” she explodes, her voice volcanic. She lunges forward and shoves him hard in the center of his chest. David stumbles backward, only to be steadied by Dwayne.

“You disobey Max every chance you get!” Nadia continues, her eyes wide and frenzied. “What difference does it make if I turn someone?!”

“BECAUSE YOU CAN’T HANDLE IT!” David bellows.

“I was trying to save her life, David! Did Max tell you that part? Hmm?”

David fumes silently.

“She was going to die. Just like my sister.” Nadia’s voice trembles now. She can’t hold the tears back as they spill down her cheeks. “I did what I had –” she chokes and her body is overtaken with emotion. Nadia leans against the bike rack for support as she lets her body become wracked by violent heaving sobs. David looks at her, bored of her humanity. He walks over and gently captures her chin with a gloved hand, lifting her face to meet his gaze. There's no emotion in his gaze, no ounce of sympathy or feeling. 

“You have no idea what you’ve done.”

“She’s my best friend,” Nadia whispers.

“She’s clutter, and she’s better off dead.”

His words are like a knife. Her gut wrenches and her blood boils. She wants to hit him but all she can do is sob quietly. She feels David turn away from her, feels a gust of wind, and then nothing. Nadia opens her eyes. Paul and Dwayne are gone, but Marko remains, gazing at her with wide, sympathetic eyes. He walks over to her and sticks his hand out. Nadia sniffles and looks up at him, her brow knitting together in confusion.

“I’ll take you home,” he says softly.

Nadia wipes her nose on her sleeve. She feels pathetic. Angry. Ashamed.

“To the hotel?”

Marko smiles and flashes her a quizzical look.

"Where else would we go? You're still our sister, Nadia."

She reaches out and takes his hand, her chest swelling with relief. Marko drapes an arm over her shoulder to keep her steady. Her body feels like it's made of lead and she can barely think straight. She doesn't know what waits for her at the cave, but she sure as hell has to find a new place to sleep. Dread grows in the pit of her stomach and she feels like she's going to be sick.

"We'll go slow," he whispers. "Give David some time to cool off."

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Nadia asks.

Marko shrugs.

"I lost someone too once."

They walk in silence until they reach his bike. Nadia climbs on and gingerly wraps her arms around his waist. He feels so different from David. She's not used to this.

"You're gonna have to hang on tighter than that, mama," Marko calls over the sound of his engine revving.

She squeezes harder this time as his bike shoots into the darkness. Nadia shuts her eyes and buries her face in his shoulder as more tears spill down her cheeks.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in two days?! What can I say, I broke through some serious writer's block. Thanks everyone for the kudos and lovely comments <3 I'm sorta liking where this story is heading, even though it's taken a while to get here.

Marko’s bike stops by the cliff. He drove slower than usual, taking easy turns and giving her hand reassuring squeezes every once in a while. He flicks the kickstand down with the toe of his boot and climbs off, reaching for her hand. Nadia takes it and lets him help her dismount. She’s still shaky. The tears have faded somewhat, but anxiety builds in the pit of her stomach as her eyes bounce from Marko to the cave and back again.

“You okay?” he asks.

“To tell you the truth,” Nadia says, leaning against his bike. “I don’t really want to go in there.”

“Gotta face the music eventually.”

She sighs. She could talk to David and sort this whole thing out. It would take a while, and an awful lot of explaining and apologizing, but she could do it. She’d play to his weakness. His parents, his past, Alice. A sliver of confidence begins to worm its way into the pit of her stomach, slowly loosening the anxious knot that’s been building for the past thirty minutes. It’s not much, but it’s enough to get her to push herself off of Marko’s bike as he spins on his heel and starts down the rickety staircase toward the cave.

“Hey, Marko?” she calls.

“What’s up, mama?”

She jumps over a piece of rotting wood and lands on the stair next to him, smiling.

“Thanks.”

“For what?”

“For the ride, and for being so nice.”

Marko shrugs his shoulders, but flashes her a warm smile.

“We look after our own. It’s important.”

“Might wanna pass that tidbit along to David.”

Marko snickers.

“Be thankful you’ve never faced the full brunt of his temper.”

They hop down the stairs and into the cave. The tension in the air hits Nadia immediately. It’s not as thick as it was on the boardwalk, but it eats away at her confidence. Dwayne and Paul are lounging on the ratty couch. Marko helps her jump down into the lobby. It’s a mess. Smashed bottles litter the floor, and a lot of the records and trinkets that hang from the ceiling have been viciously ripped down and stomped into the dirt. She can still smell his rage. No doubt Dwayne and Paul watched his tantrum. They’ll be the ones to clean it up.

Paul greets her with a small, but warm smile. Dwayne simply stares, not angry, just curious. Nadia shoves her hands into the pockets of her jacket and toes at the loose earth.

“I guess you’re both pissed at me.”

They shake their heads and Marko wanders over to plunk himself down between them on the couch.

“No,” Dwayne says softly. “But there are rules.”

“How the fuck am I supposed to know the rules if David won’t teach me?”

Paul chuckles. Nadia quells the anger bubbling in her chest.

“It’s been a long time since David’s sired anyone. My guess is he’s trying to take it slow.”

“Yeah, like… forty years?” Marko asks, his eyes flicking to Paul for clarification. “When was Janine?”

“Who’s Janine?” Nadia asks, unable to keep the jealousy from creeping into her tone.

“It doesn’t matter,” Dwayne rumbles.

“The fuck it doesn’t,” Nadia spits.

“She’s dead, chica," Paul interjects. "Tried to take over. Max took her out.”

If Nadia’s face could pale any more, she’d be chalk white. Dwayne clears his throat in an attempt to get the conversation back on track.

“Nadia, Max put these rules in place to protect us. New vampires have to be vetted by him.”

“Except me.”

“And me,” Marko says softly.

She sighs.

“I’m gonna go talk to him.”

“I don’t think that’s a great idea,” Dwayne counters. “We set up a room for you back there.”

He points behind the couch to a small hallway that’s now lit by candlelight. She smiles.

“Is my stuff in there?”

“No.”

She looks toward the room that her and David share and nervously chews on her lip.

“Nadia, I can grab your stuff,” Marko offers, rising from the couch. She shakes her head and motions for him to sit back down.

“I’m a big girl. Gotta face the music eventually, right?"

Marko's cherub-like face breaks into a grin.

“Looks that way."

She pads softly toward the back of the cave and down the small hallway leading to their shared bedroom. Every muscle in her body trembles and she tries to block out the worst case scenario that’s rolling in the back of her mind like a nightmare. David. Killing her. Tossing her lifeless corpse off of the cliff without a second thought. She stops and takes a deep breath, trying to shield her thoughts from him. She can feel him searching for her, his psyche boring into hers like a needle. She’s too scared, too inexperienced, and too weak to block him out completely. Nadia raises her arm, and with a trembling fist, knocks lightly on the door. She waits, fighting the bile creeping up in the back of her throat. After an eternity, the door whips open. David stands before her, dressed in his tight black t-shirt and jeans. His face is still twisted into a scowl. His eyes are icy and empty.

“What do you want.”

“To talk.”

“Where’s Reilly?”

“I took her home. I told you that."

His expression shifts to something stony and unreadable.

“I’ll be taking her out tomorrow night,” he says, his voice low and dangerous. If Nadia’s heart could beat, it would explode out of her chest right now.

“What for?” she snaps.

“You’re inexperienced and too young to teach her anything.”

“I can hunt.”

“Barely,” David scoffs.

Nadia’s eyes well up with tears.

“Why are you being like this?”

“You broke the rules.”

“Max’s rules.”

“And mine.”

She fights the urge to scoff. He’s such a fucking hypocrite.

“I did it to save her life,” Nadia chokes out. “She was dying, David. If you could have saved Alice or your parents, wouldn’t you have done the same thing?”

The flash of rage in David’s eyes is like lightning. His jaw clenches. She can almost see the anger radiating from his body. Nadia steps back, instantly regretting the words that fall out of her mouth. He lets out a low, incredulous laugh.

“I trust you with that and you spit it back in my fucking face, trying to garner sympathy?"

“David –”

“Save it.”

Nadia keeps her gaze downcast as her tears spill onto the tips of her shoes. She feels him disappear for a moment before her black duffel bag is tossed at her feet. Her heart sinks.

“Please don’t hurt her,” she whispers.

“Don’t worry, princess,” he laughs, his voice coated in poison. “Dwayne’s coming with me.”

He slams the door, not giving her the opportunity to respond. Nadia swallows a sob and lifts up the duffel bag, walking quickly past the boys and wiping away tears. They look sympathetic, no doubt hearing everything that just happened.

“I’ll see you guys tomorrow night,” she mumbles.

Nadia pads to her room. The boys have done their best, collecting flower-patterned scarves and draping them over the walls. There’s a cracked vase filled with fake plastic roses sitting atop an old, rickety dresser. A flicker of a smile dances across her lips before she drops the duffel bag onto the floor, collapses onto the bed, and begins to weep into a faded blue pillow.

She doesn’t remember falling asleep.

 

***

 

Reilly wakes up with a jolt and a loud gasp escapes her throat. She sits up slowly, closes her eyes, and waits. This is when the headache usually starts. Dull at first, and then it grows sharper, like a knife being slid into her skull for the better part of the first hour of her being conscious. After a few minutes, she feels nothing – no, she feels normal. Reilly’s eyes pop open and she flings herself out of bed. She glances at the clock. 8 p.m.

“Fuck.”

Reilly stumbles to the bathroom and looks in the mirror. She yelps and jumps back, surprised to see her very transparent reflection staring back at her. Reilly reaches up and touches her face, staring in disbelief. It worked. It fucking worked. A wave of relief and giddiness shoots through her veins, her heart pumping ferociously. She showers quickly and washes the smell of the ocean out of her hair before padding back to her bedroom in her towel. Her long, wet hair drips water onto the carpet. There’s a post-it stuck to her door from her mom.

_Gone in to work early. Dinner’s in the oven._

_See you tomorrow morning._

_BE GOOD! – mom_

Reilly starts to chuckle, but a flash of movement in her bedroom catches her eye.

“Nadia?”

No answer. Reilly pushes the door open slightly and sees two figures looming near her window. She lets out a loud shriek and stumbles backward.

“Hi Reilly,” David growls.

“What the fuck are you doing here?”

She clutches her bath towel to her body as tightly as she can. David's eyes remain fixed on hers. Something about him makes her skin crawl. How in the fuck does Nadia date this nutsack?

“We’re going on a hunting trip,” the taller one quips. She doesn't know his name - or if she's been told, never cared much to remember.

“Who are you? How the fuck did you get in here?”

“Told your mom we were friends of yours.”

“There’s no fucking way.”

“Well, it’s either that or we try to sell her a vacuum cleaner,” David replies. "I'm not such a great salesman, though. What about you Dwayne?"

"Mm-mm," Dwayne replies with a slow shake of his head.

Reilly snarls.

"If you hurt her, I swear --"

David rolls his eyes.

"Relax, sweetheart. We're here for you and you only. Mommy is at work and will be back tomorrow morning as promised."

“What do you want?” Reilly asks, growing angry and impatient. “Where’s Nadia?”

“Occupied,” David spits. The sides of his mouth twitch in anger.

Reilly scoffs.

“Wow, David. You’re a real charmer with the one sentence answers. Anyone ever tell you that?”

David steps forward, his pale skin glowing in the moonlight.

“Dwayne and I will be taking you on your first hunt.”

“What?”

“It’s the only way to make the change,” Dwayne says offhandedly as he peruses her bookshelves.

“But… I’m a vampire. Nadia turned me."

David lets out a dark chuckle, reaches out, and wipes a microscopic soap bubble off of Reilly’s face.

“Oh no, sweetness,” he purrs. “You’re only half.”

She eyes him with suspicion and just a tinge of hatred. His eyes pierce into hers, venomous and angry. Whatever stick is up his ass isn’t being removed any time soon.

“I want Nadia.”

“Too bad,” David announces. “You’re stuck with us. Get your clothes on and meet us downstairs in twenty.”

He storms past her and hops the railing, making no sound when he lands in the front foyer of the house. Dwayne saunters past her, a copy of Frankenstein tucked in his arm. He shoots her a wink and disappears. Reilly sighs heavily.

“You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me,” she whispers, tossing her towel aside and climbing into her jeans. This is going to be a long, painful night.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, a longer chapter! The songs mentioned here will be added to the playlist, which you can still find here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpT2b1hG2GyY6fTd8jEJr3DEhkVdYS06_
> 
> Thanks for reading! <3

Nadia wakes up in a daze. Everything is slow to start. She sees flashes of nightmares, but nothing concrete enough to think too deeply about. She groans and instinctively reaches over for David, only to be confronted with cold, empty space. A lump forms in her throat and a dull ache begins in her chest. Her eyes feel puffy and raw, but no tears come. Her pillow is still damp. She rolls onto her back sighs, staring up at the ceiling, letting herself get lost in thought. David and Dwayne would have left right at dusk. Nadia’s stomach clenches not knowing what’s happening to Reilly. She’s tough, but not necessarily tough enough to stand up to David. Nadia shakes her head and slides out of bed. Maybe they’re not gone. Maybe it’s not too late. She opens the door and goes to leave, but her right foot collides with something heavy. She hisses and looks down.

It’s a milk crate filled with cassette tapes and Paul’s rock box resting beside it. There’s a folded note resting on top.

 _Thought this would help._ _Don’t worry about Reilly. I’ll take care of her._

_-Dwayne_

She laughs, grateful, and pulls the box and the rock box into her room. She crouches down and pilfers through the tapes. Fleetwood Mac, Blondie, Bowie, New Order, Talking Heads, and some Twisted Sister. A perfect mixture of heartbreak and “fuck you” to relationships.

“Dwayne, you sweetheart,” she murmurs.

A loud knock almost knocks her on her ass.

“Jesus!”

“Nadiaaaaaaa!” Paul calls from behind the door.

She snarls and sighs, trudging back to her bed and climbing underneath the covers.

“What do you want?!”

“Open the door!” 

Marko's voice. Shit. They're planning something.

“No!” she yells, pulling the blankets up over her head.

The door smashes open and she hears two sets of footsteps approach her bed.

“I’m not dressed,” she mumbles.

“Well, you'd better fix that, chica. We’re going out.”

Nadia lowers the blanket so that only her eyes are visible. Marko and Paul hover over her bed, grinning at her. Marko crouches down, sticking his face right into hers. She snarls; Marko chuckles and bites his lip. Nadia feels like smacking him. She’s on edge, her hunger screaming to be satiated. The truth is, lying in bed all night and staring at the ceiling sounds far more appealing than having to hunt her own meal. She doesn’t enjoy killing like the boys do. Maybe it’s a new vampire thing, but it always feels like such a hassle. There’s the waiting, the anticipation, the having to get it “just right” so that they don’t struggle too much and get away. And then there’s the mess and the cleanup, which David always says not to worry about, but it’s not like Nadia can just leave a body in the middle of a beach. It’s gotta go somewhere. 

“You need to eat, Nadia,” Marko says softly.

“I’m not hungry,” she pouts.

“That’s a lie.”

She narrows her eyes at Marko, who won’t. Stop. Fucking. Smiling.

“You’re turning gray, and your eyes are glassy,” Paul says. “And you’ve got an attitude.”

“I do not have a fucking attitude.”

Paul shoots her an incredulous look while opening up her duffel bag and tossing some clothes onto the bed.

"Put these on and meet us outside."

“I don’t want to come out,” Nadia snarls. “Both of you, fuck off!”

“Marko?” Paul asks. “I think it’s time for some drastic measures.”

Marko perks up, grinning like an idiot.

“What kind of drastic measures are we talkin’ about here, bro?”

“We’re jumping.”

“We’re jumping?”

“On me?!” Nadia squeaks.

“Yep.”

“THE FUCK YOU ARE!” she screams from under the blankets.

“On three!” Marko yells. “One… two…”

“ALL RIGHT!” she screams.

She throws the blankets off of her and leaps out of bed, forgetting she’s wearing a pair of boy shorts and one of David’s old, baggy t-shirts. Marko averts his eyes, but Paul lets out a long, low whistle.

“All right. All right. I’m up. I’m up! Happy? Both of you fuck off and I’ll meet you outside in five minutes.”

“Got it,” Marko yelps as he skitters toward the door. Paul lingers a little longer, his eyes climbing up and down her figure. Nadia lets out a low growl.

“Paul…”

“I’m going! I’m going!”

Nadia throws on a pair of ratty blue jeans and a black tank top. She shrugs her leather jacket over her shoulders, climbs into her combat boots, and trudges to the front of the cave where Marko and Paul are waiting.

“Where are we going?”

“Dancing,” Paul says with a grin. “Perfect place to pick up prey. Besides, Marko needs to get laid big time.”

Marko looks embarrassed and Nadia is sure that he would be crimson if it was possible.

“I don’t – I do just fine on my own, man,” he says softly.

“I don’t dance,” Nadia grumbles, changing the subject.

“You do now, mama,” Marko calls as he and Paul begin to climb out of the cave. Nadia follows, wishing she was back in bed. They reach the bikes and Marko gestures for her to climb onto the back of his bike. Nadia glances at Paul who shrugs.

“Up to you, sugar,” Paul purrs.

Her eyes bounce between the two of them until Marko sticks out his hand. She remembers how kind he was last night; his gentle squeezes around her fingertips that soothed her anxiety. She slowly climbs on to the back of his bike and snakes her hands around his waist, feeling his cool skin and muscular stomach beneath her fingertips. Marko turns his head slightly.

“Tighter,” he whispers.

Nadia’s stomach flutters, she tightens her grip, and they peel away from the cave and into the darkness.

***

David and Dwayne wait for Reilly in the living room. David looks smug, smoking in her mother’s favourite chair, while Dwayne is leaned up against the fireplace reading. David opens his mouth to say something but Reilly ignores him and pads into the kitchen.

“Where are you going?” David calls, clearly annoyed. He snaps his fingers at Dwayne and points to the kitchen, eyes narrowed and filled with suspicion.

_Watch her._

“I’m hungry,” Reilly calls over her shoulder.

“We’re going hunting, idiot,” David’s voice echoes through the kitchen.

Reilly rolls her eyes and takes her dinner out of the oven.

“I want real food, _idiot_!”

She turns around to find Dwayne just inches from her. She yelps, the plate slips from her fingers, and he catches it in the blink of an eye.

“Careful,” he drawls, placing the plate delicately on the kitchen island.

Reilly climbs onto a barstool, rips the tinfoil off, and begins to dig into a mountain of roast beef and potatoes. Dwayne slides onto the seat opposite her and lights a cigarette. He grimaces as she eagerly stuffs her face, like it’s the first time she’s ever tasted food in her life. Reilly stops chewing and looks up at him, gravy spilling down her chin.

“Take a fuckin’ picture, why don’t you?” she tries to snarl with a mouthful of potatoes. Some of them fly out of her mouth and land near his book. Dwayne pulls it away, disgusted.

“Do you always eat like that?”

She flashes him a wide grin.

“Yup.”

Dwayne puffs on his cigarette as Reilly turns her attention back to her food.

“Where’re we going, anyway?” she asks, taking violent stabs at her potatoes. Dwayne watches, fascinated.

“Boardwalk.”

He reaches over and snatches a potato off of her plate. Reilly’s eyes narrow and she almost drives the fork right through his hand.

“Watch it, tough guy,” she growls. “Haven’t you ever been told not to get between a woman and her food?”

“There’s a rule about that?”

“Yeah, it goes something like… if you touch my food again, I’m gonna jam this fork right through your fuckin’ eye.”

“Anyone ever tell you you’re incredibly charming?”

“Always,” Reilly sneers.

“What’s taking so long?!” David bellows from the living room.

Dwayne glances up at her and closes his book. He stands and snatches another potato off of her plate.

“HEY! Watch it!” she yells.

“You’d better finish that fast. David’s getting impatient.”

Reilly sighs and dumps the rest of her plate into the garbage can. She follows Dwayne into the living room to find David standing by the door.

“Let’s go. Reilly, you ride with me.”

“Whatever dude,” she mumbles, slipping her sneakers on and following him out the door.

Despite everything that happened last night, and within the last forty-five minutes, there’s still a small sting of disbelief that eats away at the back of Reilly’s mind. Like this is all some kind of fucked up dream. Maybe she died before she went to the beach last night. Maybe the tumor has pressed on her occipital lobe, or some other part of her brain, and she’s actually wandering around naked in her house thinking she’s a fucking vampire.

This can’t possibly be real, right?

***

The three of them walk into the Catalyst Club. Paul leads the pack, Marko is close behind, with Nadia dragging her feet behind the two of them. The club isn’t too crowded for a Thursday night. She hears a hundred hearts beating out of sync and the sound of blood pulsing. It makes her dizzy. The three head toward the bar. Nadia rubs her eyes, wishing she were anywhere but here.

“Drink?” Paul asks.

“Vodka soda,” Nadia says. Paul nods and turns to his brother.

“Marko?”

“Whiskey. Neat.”

Paul nods and orders. Nadia turns her back to the bartender and sighs. Marko leans over to her.

“This’ll be good for you.”

“Says you. I wanted to lie in bed and listen to Fleetwood Mac all night.”

“Rumors?”

“You know it.”

Marko grimaces. Nadia’s jaw drops.

“You don’t like Rumors?”

“I prefer their self-titled album.”

“The only good song on there is Rhiannon.”

“Crystal,” he quips, as Paul hands them their drinks.

Nadia grimaces and shakes her head.

“Landslide,” he says, taking a sip of his whiskey.

She sighs.

“Okay, I’ll give that one to you. Two good songs.”

“I’ll drink to that,” he laughs.

They clink glasses and she takes a big gulp of her drink.

“I wouldn’t peg you for a Fleetwood Mac fan.”

“It’s the jacket, isn’t it?”

“And the fact that you ride motorbikes, terrorize Santa Carla on a nightly basis, and hang out with this hooligan,” she laughs, gesturing at Paul who is utterly preoccupied and scanning the dance floor for his prey – or a pair of tits – sometimes it’s hard to tell with him.

“All fair assumptions,” Marko replies. "But I am, in fact, deeply sensitive."

She cackles.

"Really."

Marko presses his index finger to his lips.

"It's a secret."

"Safe with me, pal," Nadia murmurs, taking another sip of her drink.

"Thanks, bud."

The song fades out and “Come on Eileen” blares through the speakers. Nadia smiles and taps her foot to the music. She used to dance to this in her bedroom and finds herself mindlessly mouthing the lyrics. Paul and Marko take notice of her newfound enthusiasm and grin at each other. Paul sticks out his hand.

“C’mon, chica. You’re gonna dance.”

“No!” Nadia laughs. “I’m good here. You guys go and have fun.”

“Come on!” Marko yells, draining his drink. Both boys try to pull her toward the dance floor, but Nadia digs her heels into the ground, literally and metaphorically.

“Nadia, this’ll be good for you!” Paul yells over the music.

“You both keep saying that, but I don’t think you –"

Marko lets her go and slinks toward the dance floor, mouthing the lyrics. She laughs and shakes her head as Paul follows, grinning like an idiot. They both turn to her and start clapping in time with the bridge of the song, beckoning her to follow them.

“COME ON, EILEEN, TOO-LOO-RYE-AY! COME ON, EILEEEN TOO-LOO-RYE-AY!”

Nadia can’t help but laugh – she rolls her eyes as best she can to disguise the fact that she actually is kind of having a good time? Maybe this will be good for her. It’s a small semblance of normalcy that David isn’t interested in. Tonight is a chance to forget about him. She slams her drink back and follows them to the dance floor. They dance to the rest of the song with total abandon, laughing and stumbling over one another. They stay on the dancefloor for what feels like hours before Nadia spots him. Long, dark hair, dark eyes, black denim jacket. Sorta her type. She’s so fucking hungry and angry at David that she can’t tell if she wants to fuck this guy or rip his throat out. Maybe both. Her dancing slows and she feels herself hone in on him as he dances. He slows down too, turning to face her and smiling. The boys take notice. Paul snakes his arm around her shoulder, grinning.

“See something you like?”

“I’ll be back in fifteen, tops,” she mutters, stripping her jacket off and shoving it into Paul’s arms. He whistles and Marko snickers, chewing his thumbnail in gleeful anticipation.

Nadia slinks toward her prey, who waits for her with open arms. She can feel the sweat lingering in the air. There’s something about him, his blood, the way his heart beats, that pulls her toward him. This better fucking work or whatever replacement meal she decides upon is going to be incredibly disappointing. His features come into full focus – large brown eyes, high cheekbones, and somewhat delicate features.

“Hi,” she whispers, cranking up her charm factor. He’s hooked instantaneously.

“I was hoping you would make your way over here.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. You with those hair metal dudes back there?”

“They’re just friends,” she urges. He nods and smiles.

“I’m Tom.”

“Nadia.”

“Pretty name.”

“I like it.”

They dance for a while. She feels Marko and Paul’s eyes on her. She feels the hunger reaching a fever pitch. She’s gotta get them out of here soon or this place is going to be a bloodbath. Nadia wraps her arms around Tom’s neck and leans in, grazing his cheek with her lips. He shudders beneath her.

“You wanna get out of here?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

She grins and walks him toward the exit, past Marko and Paul who are trying their hardest not to laugh. Nadia leads Tom out the front door of the club and down an alley. To her surprise, he pushes her up against the brick wall of the building and attacks her mouth with his. She lets out a loud, fake moan. Gotta give the guy some confidence before she rips his throat out. His hands slide up her thighs, his touch is clumsy and fumbling. She sighs and breaks the kiss.

“My turn.”

Nadia spins them around and slams him, hard, against the wall. Tom lets out a soft grunt and tries to kiss her again, but she buries her face in his neck. His blood smells incredible and she feels her fangs descend, her face twist into that mask of sharp, angry edges. Nadia lets her teeth linger over his jugular for a second before biting down. The gorgeous sound of flesh tearing spikes her adrenaline and she moans underneath Tom’s panicked screaming. She drinks, deeply and greedily while Soft Cell's "Where Did Our Love Go?" reverberates through the building.

The boys were right, this _was_ good for her.


End file.
